Small Changes
by LiamMorg
Summary: They say small changes can make all the difference, so what if the Wave mission didn't end as it was supposed to? How much could that small alteration change the outcome of Naruto's legend? The results would surprise even the wisest. Stronger/Smarter Naruto. NarufemHaku. Shōton Naruto. Good Sasuke. Enjoy! M for language and possible lemons. Will be epic-length.
1. The Small Change

**Even though I don't feel it necessary to say this, I don't own Naruto. Damn, that's disappointing. Imagine the money!**

**Just to get this outta the way, no harem. **

**I'm just warning you all now, the first couple of chapters have noticeable characterization problems along with being generally lower quality, it's a problem but I _do_ get better. I think I do anyway... I would rewrite them, but to be honest with you guys I can't really be bothered.**

**I know many of you - like me - sometimes search stories based on Kekkei Genkai or pairings, so the summary now somewhat spoils the reveal of the Sh**ōton. I realized that many of you would find the story a lot more interesting with such an uncommon bloodline, which I have resolved to make awesome.****

**Chapter 1: The Small Change**

**-Start-**

The mission to Wave country. That was the beginning of a tale that would be told for generations; the start of a legend. However, what if that mission had ended a little differently, how much would it change?

Better yet, would it be for the better, or for worse? Only time would tell.

The battle between Naruto, Sasuke and Zabuza's apprentice was not going well for the rookie genin. The masked missing-nin was playing around with them at this point, launching senbon after senbon at the two young ninja.

Sasuke, being unable to melt the mirrors and having just awakened the **Sharingan** was trying his hardest to use Naruto's clones as a way of blindsiding the masked ninja.

Naruto - in his typical fashion - just churned out clone after clone, hoping that it would get him somewhere.

Suffice it to say, it really wasn't.

However, Sasuke was doing his best in an otherwise terrible situation and was getting closer and closer with his uses of the **Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu (Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu)** by using the **Sharingan's **time slowing capabilities to track the ninja's assaults. Having noticed this, the masked ninja made a decision.

Take the bait out of play.

The bait - being Naruto and his endless supply of clones - was the obvious choice for turning this battle around. Without the clones, Sasuke's leverage of the situation disappears. But instead of Naruto, Sasuke is taken down.

This drives Naruto - in a fit of rage and sadness of losing his first friend - to call apon the power of his tenant, The Kyuubi. He makes quick work of the masked ninja after giving basically everyone a heart attack by releasing the malevolent chakra of the Kyuubi.

After punching the masked ninja through the mirrors, Naruto goes for a finishing blow, however something happens that he does not expect; The mask had fallen away after the blow, showing him none other than Haku. The 'boy' he met in the woods not too long ago.

This time around however he cannot stop his attack fully - his momentum too high and his surprise clouding his mind - so he strikes the boy with the least amount of force that he could, which knocks the boy out. He simple stares at the boy, wide eyed.

"But... why? Why were you so nice that day?" Naruto said quietly to himself as he tried to come to terms with what was happening. Then he begins to hear the sound of chirping birds, and looks over to see Zabuza pinned by a squad of... dogs? While his teacher, Kakashi Hatake, the copy ninja is holding a mass of writhing electricity in his palm. This was his signature jutsu. The **Raikiri (Lightning Cutter).**

"Your future... is death!" Kakashi said, before running at Zabuza and impaling his hand through his heart. Zabuza's eyes widened and he let out a cry of pain before falling silent, the dogs immediately releasing him and poofing away. _'That... was disgusting.'_ Naruto thought while trying not to throw up. Who could blame him? His teacher's hand was in the guys chest!

Immediately clapping was heard, all eyes turned to see Gato and his army of thugs simply looking on at the ninja's fight.

"Well I guess the 'Great demon of the Mist' isn't so great after all..." Gato said smugly. "...good, wasn't planning on paying the guy anyway, this just makes everything easier for me!" At this everyone present narrowed their eyes, except Tazuna who looked a little worried. However, his thugs didn't get chance to attack, as a crossbow bolt landed in front of them.

Everyone turned to see Inari and the villagers at the other end of the bridge, armed with whatever weapons they could find. Naruto smirked at this. _'Seems the kid has courage after all.'_ He though. Naruto then proceeded to make an army of clones while Kakashi readied himself for another fight.

It was a very disappointing fight, Gato's men fought like brainless fools expecting the first slice to end it all. This made it rather easy for the ninja who simply knocked them all out while Kakashi killed Gato with another Raikiri, and with him gone Wave's freedom was returned.

The Konoha shinobi promptly made their way back to Tazuna's house. Sakura was able to wake up Sasuke, showing the enemy ninja had not actually killed him. They then bound said ninja in rope and took him with them. They then all had a well deserved rest while the young blond contemplated the events of the day.

_'Was everything we spoke about in the woods just an act so that he could find out about my team, or was he planning on quickly getting rid of me if he had the chance? Or maybe... he was sincere.'_ These weren't the only thoughts going through the blond's head. He was known to be a little dumb, but he wasn't a complete moron, his brain was indeed functional.

So they all slept the day off, knowing that tomorrow they would have to deal with the building of the bridge again, along with having a little chat with their 'guest' Naruto however wanted this more than the rest of them for reasons they were not aware.

_'I WILL figure out if he was sincere, no matter what it takes!'_ These were his last thoughts before he nodded off to sweet, sweet sleep.

**-The Next Day-**

Everyone awoke feeling a little stiff, the enemy ninja was still unconscious so they all decided to have a nice morning before the less pleasant activity of the day began. Interrogation never was a fun job.

Somewhere in Konoha a very scarred man felt the need to knock some sense into someone for reasons he didn't understand.

Naruto made his way into the kitchen and saw Tsunami making breakfast and smiled. She was such a kind hearted person, not like the Konoha population _'No need to be bitter, let's just enjoy the time we have here...'_ he thought a little glumly.

"Good morning!" Naruto said cheerfully, as Tsunami turned to him.

"Ah good morning to you too Naruto, how was your rest?" She replied with a smile. Naruto yawned a little before answering.

"It was great, after all that action yesterday it felt great to just rest you know?" He then saw his teammates at the table along with his sensei. So his thoughts returned to their prisoner, but he'd deal with that after breakfast.

After a nice quite morning Naruto finally piped up "So Kakashi-sensei what are we gonna do about that guy?" He asked with a small frown, not liking the possibility that his new friend could've been playing him for a fool.

"Well Naruto..." Kakaski began "...we don't really have to do anything I suppose, he isn't technically our enemy anymore, but we need to ensure that he won't go into a rage over Zabuza's death so we need to play this carefully." He finished with a very business like attitude that the rookies were a bit taken aback by, Kakashi could be serious?

"Fair enough Sensei" He replied, while Sasuke started to grin a little, maybe he could test some **Sharingan** Genjutsu on their prisoner.

"Kakashi..." Sasuke began. "...if we need to interrogate the guy, I want to try out my **Sharingan** on him." Meanwhile Kakashi simply sighed, Sasuke couldn't just stay out of it could he?

"Sasuke, simply awakening the **Sharingan** doesn't mean you have access to all it's powers, give yourself chance to train it a little ne?" He replied, while Sasuke simply scowled and went back to his brooding, while Sakura fawning over him. _'I really need to train that out of them'_ thought Kakashi with hidden exasperation.

Naruto then turned to address Sasuke about his 'death', thinking it best to be honest rather than continuing their silly feud. "Hey uh, Sasuke?" He said, to which Sasuke looked at him with a single brow raised. Naruto took this as a sign to continue. "I'm... uh... I'm glad you weren't killed on the bridge. We may not act it, but I do think of you as a friend." He said a little nervously. During the mission the two had seemed to become closer, but neither went as far as to mention 'friendship' to the other. He was a little worried Sasuke would just scoff and call him a 'Dobe'.

"Like that guy could kill me Dobe." He said, to which Naruto simply lowered his head. Sasuke, however was simply using this bravado to ease into the more unfamiliar thing he was about to be. Nice... ish. " But... Thank you... Naruto." He said, having to grit his teeth to say Naruto instead of Dobe. Naruto immediately cheered up at this, maybe it was a sign that the day would end well.

Sakura couldn't believe her eyes. She didn't hate Naruto anymore, but she was shocked Sasuke could be so nice, hell the guy barely spoke to either of them. Maybe they required a trial by fire to kick-start their friendship. A trial by fire she wasn't a part of. She sighed, wondering when she could get the attention of her Sasuke-kun. She would need to be there next time, maybe she should train a little?

Naruto decided to address his other teammate. "So Sakura, how are you doing about this? Seeing death isn't easy. I almost threw up seeing Kakashi kill Zabuza." He said. She simply looked at him and blinked, he could speak to her without being annoying? Nah, he was probably deep in thought about seeing that boy again, since he'd told them they'd met once before. Kakashi then scolded him about not telling them, but honestly could they blame him? The guy was so... Normal... in the forest. Not to mention Naruto was a rookie genin, he'd hardly notice something so... well hidden.

"Well... I'm doing okay, I guess. I don't think I'll sleep right for a while though, that was a pretty exhausting day." She said. Then she remembered something, something very important. "Naruto." She said with a hint of fear. "What... what was that power you used on the bridge?" She said with apprehension. Naruto raised an eyebrow, until he remembered what they were talking about. He was trying his hardest to come up with an excuse.

Kakashi was mentally leaping at the friendly interaction of his team. Alas all good things must come to an end and when the Kyuubi came to attention it was usually that time. So he needed to cut this short. "How about we pay our little guest a visit, ne?" He said quickly, not giving anyone chance to say no. All the genin walked with him, but Sakura made a mental note to continue this at some point.

**-Later That Day-**

Haku was not having a good time, no first the blond boy goes into a fit of rage and releases unbelievably powerful - and evil - red chakra and beats him outright. Then he was knocked out. He had no idea what happened to Zabuza or if he was even alive. Not to mention he was a prisoner. Who knows what they planned to do to him?

Then his heart sank. What if Zabuza was dead? What could he do without his master, he was never made to do anything himself. The only serious decision he ever made was to go with Zabuza and now that he was dead he had no purpose. _'Maybe I can just get them to kill me and get it over with...'_ He thought sadly.

Though, all this time alone in the room gave him plenty of time to think about things, which made him think_ 'Do I need to die? I have freedom now, freedom to do as I wish. Can I really put that as a positive though? I've... never had complete freedom, I don't know what to do... '_ Haku thought, as his thoughts trailed back to the blond boy he met in the forest a few days before the battle of the bridge, the one responsible for him being taken out of the fight.

He sighed. What would Naruto think of him after he tried to kill him and his friend, the Uchiha? Haku legitimately liked the boy since he was honest and had a very positive goal, despite all the sadness and loneliness he saw in the blonds eyes. In a way, they were the same, it seemed.

His musing were finally stopped when the entirety of Team 7 entered the room with various expressions. Kakashi seemed neutral, Sakura was a little fearful of the one who could defeat 'her Sasuke-kun' and Sasuke was brooding. However it was the blond's expression which truly made him upset.

He looked betrayed, hurt by the fact that the one he spoke with so casually was actually someone who was planning to kill them. Though he couldn't help but think about the way Sasuke was spared, despite everything. This brought a little hope to his clouded mind.

The silence was palpable, which Kakashi decided was enough and began to speak. "So, let's talk shall we?" His only response was Haku looking up at him and inclining his head slightly.

"Alright then, let's start with names. My name is Kakashi Hatake, and you are?" He spoke cheerfully, despite the fact that this was - for all intents and purposes - an interrogation.

"My name is Haku Yuki. I am the last of the Yuki clan." He spoke with little emotion, something Kakashi could easily connect to the fact that Zabuza was dead.

"Well I didn't ask about your clan status, but I'm pleased you're being so co-operative..." He said "...now then since your friend Zabuza is dead, what do you intend to do? We can't actually accuse you of anything other than assault since you are neither a missing nin nor have you killed anyone." He continued in a serious voice.

"I... I don't know, Zabuza's goals were my life. I am little more than a broken tool..." He said sadly, looking crestfallen, with a few tears welling up at the confirmation on his masters death. Then he began to cry. Team 7 gave him some time to calm down before continuing.

Well they WOULD have, if Naruto wasn't there.

Naruto couldn't take the way he thought of himself and decided it was his time to get involved. "What do you mean just a tool? You are a ninja, a human being! If that's all that guy thought of you as then there was no point of helping the jerk!" He said with anger leaking out. Haku hearing this let out a small laugh, though it was more bitter than cheerful.

"That may be, but what would you do if you had only one precious person? Would you do anything to help them, to get them to achieve their dreams? That was exactly what my goal was for Zabuza-sama." He replied, again almost emotionless. Kakashi decided to butt in before Naruto threw a tantrum.

"Alright, well that's good and all but we still don't know if you are safe to release. So until the bridge is complete you will be our 'guest' so to speak. After that you can do as you please, since you clearly were just following orders." Kakashi spoke, knowing that everything said was true by examining the conversation with his **Sharingan**.

The other two members of Team 7 were surprisingly indifferent. Sasuke was disappointed he couldn't use his **Dojutsu **to interrogate the guy while Sakura was silently fawning.

"If that is what must be done, so be it." Haku spoke with finality. Kakashi nodded at this, slightly glad the boy was so broken since it made his job here so much easier. He then untied Haku and allowed him to go and clean himself of all the filth accumulated during the fight.

After a while, he emerged and went downstairs. Tazuna's family, not realizing what went on during the boy and Team 7 had a silent heart attack thinking he was going to finish what Zabuza started, but were surprised when he silently sat down and did nothing. Oh and I mean nothing, he sat there near motionless. Like a statue. A creepy, mentally broken statue.

This was the sight Naruto arrived too after coming back from some light training with tree climbing, since he was trying to further hone his chakra control. Seeing Haku in this state made it easier to approach the boy, since he knew how loneliness felt. He sat down next to boy and took a few moments to compose his thought, not wanted to get upset over potentially nothing.

"So..." He began "...was any of it real? Was our conversation just a convenient lie to get away without making me see who you really were?" He said softly, not really wanting the answer, but steeling himself for it when it came.

"Yes it was. I could see we were the same. I saw it in your eyes, the loneliness and the pain and it made me happy to see another who had shared those feelings so I couldn't help but interact with you." Haku replied. Naruto let out a genuine smile at this. He was thrilled that the boy hadn't just been lying to him.

"That's a relief, I was afraid you were just lying to me or something. So what are you going to do when we finish the bridge? You can't exactly just wander, it's not really safe to do that." Naruto replied, never losing his smile.

"I still don't know. I have never really made my own decisions Naruto. I have been following Zabuza-sama's orders to the letter my whole life since... since the incident" Haku said, flinching slightly at the last part. Bringing up his past was never the easiest thing for him. He had major family issues.

"Do you... want to talk about it?" Naruto replied nervously. He didn't exactly want to drive the boy away by bringing up a topic he didn't want to discuss, but his curiosity got the better of him. Haku thought about this for a second, weighing the options. _'I think I should talk about this, to finally let it go.'_ He thought.

"Y...Yes. However could we speak somewhere more private? This isn't easy to speak about." He said, clearly apprehensive about doing so.

"That's fine Haku, let's go up into the room." Naruto replied softly. He wasn't exactly clever but if there was one thing he understood it was a painful past experience. Hell, he had a pretty damn good chance of beating most sob stories.

"Thank you, lead the way." Haku stated. Naruto nodded leading him upstairs and into his temporary sleeping quarters. They then sat down in an uncomfortable silent while Haku mentally prepared himself for the story he was about to tell for the first time. He didn't even bother telling it to Zabuza, knowing his past meant little to the man.

"My Kaa-san was a member of the Yuki clan, like I was. However in Water country the current Mizukage declared **Kekkei Genkai (Bloodline Limit(s))** to be impure, or evil. I can't remember the specifics of why he did it, but he did. My Kaa-san didn't want to be killed for something she had no control over so she kept it hidden, never showing it to the world. After a while she met my father and settled down with him, eventually leading to my birth." He recalled happily, this was the good part of her early life so she had no issue telling this part.

"My early life was very good. My Kaa-san and Tou-san were nice people. We weren't rich or anything but we could live comfortably. However... that all changed when I awoke my **Kekkei Genkai**." Haku said. Naruto could immediately tell where this was going and so steeled himself for the tragic end.

"I used my **Hyoton** powers carelessly. I wasn't even aware it was a **Kekkei Genkai**. At that age I knew little about the shinobi world. My Kaa-san saw that and slapped me across the face, something she NEVER did unless it was extremely serious. She yelled at me never to use it again, but my Tou-san... saw everything." He continued, barely containing his anguish.

"My... my Tou-san... he... he killed my Kaa-san, something to do with demonic bloodlines or something. I wasn't really listening, I was far too afraid. He came at me with tears running down his face. I don't think he really wanted to do it. He was likely told by his friends that they'd report his family. So I did the only thing I could, unconsciously channeling my **Hyoton** powers and... I killed everyone in the house... I had no... choice." He said, no longer containing the tears. Naruto couldn't help but hug the poor boy. He noticed something though. Haku's chest did not seem like something a guy should have.

_'OH MY GOD HE'S A SHE!'_ He exclaimed mentally. Though honestly he was cheering, glad that he wasn't hugging a guy. He could bring this up after the boy.. no girl... finished her story.

"So then... I just went away, scrounging food wherever I could and just trying to stay alive. Then when I had sat down of a bridge one day a masked ninja came up to me. He offered me a place at his side, as a tool. That man was Zabuza-sama. From then on I simply did as he required and helped him however I could. I had a purpose. Then this all happened. Now I have nobody again!" She finished crying again. Naruto couldn't help but comfort the girl.

"It's all right Haku. If you want, I'll be your precious person. I'll be your friend." He replied soothingly. Haku could do little but widen her eyes. _'I tried to harm his friends and the bridge building. I tried to break his will within the mirrors. I did all that and... he wants to be my friend?'_ She thought, frantically trying to make sense of this.

"You... what? You want to be my friend?" After a quick nod, she couldn't hold back her confusion. "Why?!" She all but screamed. "I've done nothing but harm your team since you got here! I attacked your friend, the Uchiha. I could have killed him, and allowed the death of your sensei and your other teammate!" She said. Naruto just smiled up at her though, since she had risen to her feet in her rant.

"That's not true. Did Zabuza make you speak to me in the forest? Did Zabuza tell you to take non-lethal shots on Sasuke? That was all you Haku. You are a good person with an unhappy life." She couldn't hold back the tears with these words, jumping at him and hugging him fiercely.

"Thank you!" She repeated like a manta. Naruto was happy that she was comfortable enough around him to run her emotions like she was. Then again, the topic isn't exactly easy to speak about.

"You're welcome Haku...chan" He said unconsciously. Then both he and Haku realized what she said and she jumped back with a cute 'Eep!' and looked at him with a small blush while covering her mouth.

"Wha..What did you say?" She spoke slightly nervous. She wasn't expecting such a term of affection. _'Wait a minute... that was the female term!' _She exclaimed mentally. Did he know?! Her eyes widened for a moment before returning to normal. _'Why should I care, I have no orders to hide it anymore.'_ She thought happily while a small smile formed.

"Nevermind..." She said "...thank you again Naruto...kun." She said somewhat nervously. She didn't know how he'd react to being called that. All fears were erased when a huge smile greeted her words and he just sat there looking in her direction.

"No problem Haku-chan!" He spoke cheerfully. Haku simply returned the smile and they went back downstairs, unknowing of what just began. A Legendary partnership had been started.

**-After the Bridge's Completion-**

The rest of the week went smoothly. The Team - along with Haku, who was surprisingly cheery - guarded Tazuna and his men while they constructed the bridge. It wasn't really like they needed to but it made the village feel safer having it's heroes overlooking them. They had no issue guarding the bridge since it was an excuse to do nothing for the rest of the week.

Naruto and the girl had gotten a little closer over the week, since due to the fact Sasuke would still brood and train while Sakura fawned and... did little else Naruto didn't really have anyone to talk to but Kakashi, and his sensei still scared him a little after the fiasco with his **Raikiri**. Haku and Naruto just chatted a little and got to know the other a little. The week did wonders to cure Haku's sadness over losing Zabuza, she was now aware what the man never offered her. She never felt wanted with him... but now she was beginning to understand how it felt again.

Now that the bridge was done Team 7, Haku and the villagers were standing at its end. Team 7 was preparing to return to the Leaf Village and the villagers of the town were seeing them off. There was one other matter of business left, however. Kakashi felt it necessary to sort it out as quick as possible.

"So Haku what do you intend to do now?" He spoke seriously, his tone commanding respect. Again, the genin gaped at their teacher not being a silly, perverted time-waster. Haku sighed, she was dreading this. Before she could speak however Naruto spoke with a loud and happy tone.

"She's coming to the Leaf with us of course!" He said. Team 7 were surprised by this, but mostly by the word 'she'. He'd neglected to mention that little development of course. Kakashi coming out of his stupor decided to clear this up.

"What do you mean she's coming with us? More importantly, what do you mean by 'She'?" He said. Naruto blinked multiple times before realizing he hadn't said anything and scratched the back of his head sheepishly.

"Oops, forgot to mention that did I?" He said, earning nods all around. "And obviously I said she's coming with us because she is! Right Haku-chan?" He said. Looking at the newly discovered girl they could all tell she was in an internal struggle - except Naruto, being oblivious as he is - and all waited for HER answer.

"Well... I..." She said. _'What if they hate me for my Kekkei Genkai there? What if I'm treated like an outcast again?'_ Her thoughts raged on before she composed herself and continued. "Would they... hate me there?" She said meekly. Naruto was a little confused and decided to put his questions to rest.

"Why would they hate you? It isn't like your a... Oh." He said, remembering her childhood. "They wouldn't hate you Haku-chan, Konoha loves **Kekkei Genkai**. It would be the opposite of **Mizu no Kuni (Land of Water)**, I promise." He said calmly, not needing to explain what happened to her to his team since Kakashi pieced it together immediately. Haku still looked unsure but decided nothing could come from inaction.

"OK... I'll go to the Leaf Village with you." She said with a small smile. That in turn caused Naruto to smile, not going unnoticed by Kakashi. He simply decided to ask about it later though and they went on their way.

**-Near the Leaf Village-**

The travel from Wave to the Leaf Village was peaceful. Serene, even. It was mostly a silent trip, but not uncomfortable. Haku was thrilled and frightened at the same time at the prospect of living in the Leaf, Naruto was ecstatic about his new friend coming with them, Kakashi was enjoying his book, Sasuke was enjoying his brooding and Sakura was fawning over said Uchiha. All in all it was a pretty nice trip.

Near the Leaf Village Haku decided to break the silence. "So what's the village like anyways?" She said calmly. Kakashi decided to answer before Naruto could get into a rant.

"Oh it's a very lively village, not like the other great villages. It's always calm with a happy air around it. You'll probably love it." He said but finished with another sentence in his mind. _'If the Sandaime lets you in that is. Oh who am I kidding, Naruto will vouch for her and the Sandaime can't turn Naruto down."_ He thought with a small chuckle.

They finally arrived at the village gates and they all just waited for Haku to finish taking in the sights when Naruto said. "Welcome to the Leaf Haku-chan!"

**-End-**

**Well, that was something. I have little to no experience with writing stories so feel free to leave criticisms, but I will completely ignore flames. I don't have time for that crap. I don't really have a schedule but I don't really have much to do so expect it regularly. The latest should be every fortnight. Any later than that and feel free to kick my ass.**

**Hope you guys (and girls) enjoyed the first chapter. **

**LiamMorg. Out.**

**Ja Ne!****  
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	2. Heroes Return

**I don't own Naruto. That doesn't stop me from pretending I do though! Sigh... onto the story.**

**Chapter 2: Heroes return**

**-Start-**

"Welcome to the Leaf Haku-chan!" Said the energetic blond of the group. Haku however didn't really hear him, too enthralled with the sight of the village. It was nothing like Haku was used to, she had never been in a major village. It was completely... alien to her. In a good way. She smiled and focused back on the group who seemed curious what her reaction would be.

"It's... wonderful." She said, getting smiles from Team 7 and a slight grin from Sasuke – who is much too cool to smile. Then Kakashi decided to get the ball rolling since they had been standing just outside the gates for a little while now, they probably looked a little odd to passers-by.

"Let's actually go into the village then, shall we?" He said, earning nods from the rookies and Haku. They walked into the village and went up to the reception desk, home of Kotetsu and Izumo – The eternal Chunnin. Kakashi decided to sign them in.

"Team 7 and Jounin instructor Kakashi Hatake returning from a mission along with a guest who would like to request housing within the village." He said almost like clockwork. The Genin found this a little weird. Didn't they know who they were? They were there when they left the village. Haku wasn't really paying attention to Kakashi, she was too busy trying to perceive how her life would be in the village.

"Oh hey Kakashi..." Izumo started, before turning more professional. "...how did the mission go, just the regular C-rank right?" He continued, despite knowing that picking up a guest didn't usually happen on 'normal' C-ranks. Kakashi grinned under his mask, this story would probably never get old. He could already see it, all the other Jōnin standing there shocked while he inwardly laughs at their expressions

"Well, if you call running into Zabuza Momochi and the Demon brothers a regular C-rank then sure!" He said smiling. Izumo's jaw hit the floor with this while Kotetsu swung his head around to face them, interest newly found after his proclamation. They couldn't believe their ears, three Genin and their Jōnin sensei fought THE Zabuza Momochi?!

"What?!" Kotetsu shouted in surprise. "...why the hell would you let fresh Genin fight an A-rank missing nin?" He continued. Izumo just nodded – still shell shocked – while Kakashi was trying his hardest not to laugh their reactions. The Genin weren't so strongly willed however and broke down laughing.

Well, Naruto and Sakura did. Haku let out a few giggles while Sasuke – being the kill joy he is – was simply tapping his foot, wondering why this was taking so long.

Seeing that he'd had enough fun Kakashi decided to end their little charade. "Well, by the time we ran into Zabuza we were already in Wave. Not to mention pulling back would've undoubtedly led to the death of our client. We didn't have any real method to contact the village for reinforcements at that point. Besides, I took care of Zabuza while my Genin took on his associate, I'm not that irresponsible." He said with a pout.

Izumo and Kotetsu didn't quite buy it but decided to leave it there. "Whatever you say Kakashi..." Kotetsu said. "...oh, who was his associate by the way? He would have to be pretty tough for Zabuza to bother taking him along." He finished.

Haku eyebrows twitched at this, did she HAVE to be a male to be taken seriously? She was starting to dislike Kotetsu.

Kakashi smirked, knowing this would get a good reaction too. "Oh, nobody special. Just that girl over there is all." He said pointing at Haku, who was a little nervous being the centre of attention. Izumo gaped while Kotetsu just raised an eyebrow.

"I was being serious Kakashi." He replied. Again Haku wasn't happy about this and decided to put his scepticism to rest.

Blurring past Kakashi, Haku appeared behind Kotetsu with a senbon to his neck. He started to swear at this – having clearly annoyed the girl. A girl who spent a lot of time around Zabuza... He was so dead.

"Oh I'm sorry, am I not scary enough for you? Maybe it's because my mask is gone." She said coldly, making the man sweat even more while Naruto looked a little sheepish, since he was the one who broke said mask. Izumo and the Genin were rather surprised by this action while Kakashi decided to ease the tension.

"Alright Haku, no need to scare the man to death. We still need to see the Hokage and I get the feeling your chances of getting into the village will severely decline if you kill one of our gatekeepers." He said seriously. Haku nodded and blurred back to Naruto's side.

"Nice one." He said. Haku smiled at this and went back to her thoughts.

"Well if that's all we'll be going to see the Hokage now." Kakashi said, resulting in nods from the two Chunnin. They then started leaving while Izumo whispered to Kotetsu.

"You are so lucky Kakashi was here." He said, to which Kotetsu gulped, not wanting to see what Haku could do.

**-At the Hokage's Office-**

Upon arriving at the Hokage tower, Haku briefly studied the building before being pulled along by a grinning Naruto. Then they saw the Hokage's secretary who promptly ushered them in while going back to her duties. Whatever those were.

They entered the room to see an elderly man with spiky white hair sat at a long ornate wooden desk. This man was the Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi. The man known as The Professor. He was battling an indomitable horde of man's worst enemy. Oh yes, that's right.

He was dealing. With PAPERWORK.

"DAMN IT ALL, IT NEVER ENDS!" He said with obvious frustration. Then he spotted Team 7 at his door along with someone he didn't recognise and immediately went into Hokage mode. He turned to Kakashi who immediately straightened under the old man's wizened gaze.

"Report?" He said passively. Kakashi nodded and gave him his written report, hoping he could escape without a serious case of scolding. Alas he was too busy thinking about this and gave the Hokage plenty of time to skim through the important details before releasing a pretty hefty dosage of KI – or killing intent – on the masked Jounin.

"You took a Genin team on what was essentially an A-ranked mission?!" He said angrily, making the Jounin shrink under the intensity of his anger. He quickly composed himself, finding a way to pass off the blame to someone else. Or should I say, three other people.

"They requested we continue the mission Sandaime-sama!" He spoke quickly while receiving glares from the young Genin. _'Sell out.'_ they thought. The Hokage rolled his eyes at this. Did he really think that would work.

"Oh I wasn't aware these Genin were in charge of the team Kakashi. Must be my mistake." He said sarcastically before sighing and continuing. "Well I suppose congratulations are in order for you three, an A-rank mission without dying at your age is rather remarkable." He said kindly, entering the grandfather figure mode.

"Hai, Hokage-sama!/Thanks Jiji!" said the Genin, two of whom then looked at a certain blond incredulously. He couldn't get away with calling the Hokage that... right? However the man just smiled at them and continued.

"Well this will be recorded as an A-rank and you will be paid accordingly. Now is there anything else?" He said looking straight at Haku. She steeled her nerves and decided to speak up.

"Hai Hokage-sama. I would like to request to join the village as a shinobi of the Leaf." She said seriously. The Hokage raised an eyebrow at this. He did just read the report so he was aware of who the girl was, but he was expecting her to be a prisoner or something. Kakashi really needed to detail his reports more.

"Oh? Why should I allow this? Have you anything to offer the village?" He spoke, feigning ignorance of who she was. Haku nodded at this, she figured it would be better to be truthful.

"Hai. I am the last known individual with the **Hyōton** Kekkei Genkai. I am proficient with both my bloodline and **Suiton **ninjutsu. I have the bare minimum of knowledge regarding Fūton ninjutsu in order to use my Kekkei Genkai. I have also... received training from... Zabuza Momochi." She said, ending with her head down. This was the defining moment. If the man was as smart as they say he'd know where they found her and would make a decision now.

"I see." He said. "That is a very impressive skill set you have there. However, why should I allow you entry to the village after assisting the attempted murder of Team 7 and their client?" He spoke, not revealing what he was truly feeling, though he was very experienced so it came naturally.

Haku was feeling the pressure of the situation and was starting to falter. She was about to reply when a certain blond decided to save her the trouble.

"Jiji she was just following Zabuza's orders. Without him she has no reason to do anything bad, not to mention it shows she can follow orders well if she did that without wanting to!" The blond said defensively. Haku merely looked at him with a smile. He was so kind to her despite everything.

The Hokage despite all his experience and self control simply couldn't stop a smile from breaking out across his weary face. "Well I'll keep that in mind Naruto-kun, but I'd like to hear it from Haku." He said. Honestly he'd already made his decision but for appearances sake he'd wait until she answered.

So Haku decided to finish her argument. "I was indeed loyal to Zabuza-sama and honestly if he was still alive I would still be your enemy. However with him gone I have no grudge against you. In fact I am actually quite fond of this village thus far, and Naruto-kun has become one of my precious people." She spoke seriously. She was silently cheering that she didn't stutter or let out and hint of fear.

Kakashi and the Sandaime picked up on the way she referred to Naruto along with the fact she openly admitted she thought he was precious to her. Kakashi thought this would be great teasing material in the future, while the Sandaime was happy that Naruto finally found a girl who liked him.

Not that the idiot realized what was really going on of course, hell even Haku didn't make the connection.

"All right then. If I allow you entry as a ninja of Konoha I have a few conditions. Do you have any issues with that?" He asked, getting a quick 'No' in response he continued. "Firstly you will not be able to leave the village for a month." He said, seeing no argument he continued.

"Secondly, you will be joining Team 7 during their training sessions but you will not be on their missions." He said, again seeing no argument. It was the opposite in fact, she seemed pleased.

"Lastly, you will be inducted as a Genin and must raise through the ranks like everyone else, understood?" He finished, getting a nod and nothing else. He then smiled and got onto a more cheery topic.

"Then from this day forward – you- Haku are a shinobi of Konoha!" He said, holding out a headband. Haku smiled and was thrilled that she wouldn't be sent away, Naruto was ecstatic that she could stay and he could spend more time with her and Kakashi and the rookies looked pleased. She was a nice girl once you got past the attempted murder.

Hiruzen decided to finish this up. "Now if that is all I must request you all leave. Naruto I will speak you soon I'm sure." He said. They all turned to leave when the air grew cold. "Oh, and Kakashi? I expect you back later for a...chat about your teaching style." He said in a tone that promised either pain or a massive chewing out. He sighed and left the room.

"Haku!" The Sandaime called, to which she turned and walked back to the man. "I don't suppose you have somewhere to stay do you? I can't exactly have you sleeping outside now can I?" He said. She blinked. Where was she going to stay? Maybe they'd give her temporary housing.

"Um... No I don't." She said neutrally. The Sandaime sighed, arranging temporary housing was always a pain in the ass. The apartment complex owners would argue with him for ages to stop from having to give an apartment for free. Naruto, who was waiting at the door looked up at this.

"You could stay with me." He blurted out without thinking. Then he blinked repeatedly, realizing what he said. _'Why did I say that? When she sees the state of my apartment she'll think I'm some sort of lazy slob!'_ He thought. The Sandaime smirked playfully.

"Well Naruto-kun while I'm sure she appreciates the offer your apartment is not made for multiple people. I'll sort out the housing, come back in an hour or two Haku and I'm sure I'll have something for you." He said. Haku – who had blushed at the concept of living with Naruto (for reasons she didn't understand) – settled down at this and nodded. "Thank you Hokage-sama." She said.

He nodded and sent them out. Then after a few minutes he spoke – seemingly to himself – loudly. "ANBU! BRING ME KAKASHI!" He shouted, making the shadows of the room flicker about before disappearing. He sighed and leaned back. 'I'm too old for this shit.' He thought achingly.

**-With Team 7 and Haku-**

"Alright my cute little Genin, congratulations on your first A-ranked mission! I wasn't expecting to say this so soon, but it brings me nothing but pride to say so!" He said happily with a trademarked eye-smile. Team 7 smiled at this before Kakashi continued. "All right have a good rest tonight and meet me at training ground 7 and 0600." He said before the ANBU appeared and whispered something to make him pale and promptly shunshin away.

"Huh, I wonder what that was about." Naruto said. Sasuke rolled his eyes at this and decided to get his daily insult to the stupid blond in.

"Isn't it obvious? The ANBU work for the Hokage, and he seemed pretty mad earlier when he asked Kakashi to come back later. You're such an idiot Dobe." He said with a smirk. Naruto was about to retort when Haku put a hand on his shoulder and shook her head. He conceded to this and simply decided to ignore the prideful Uchiha.

Sakura decided to throw in her own little comment. "So Sasuke-kun you wanna go get a bite to eat or something?" She said suggestively. Sasuke snorted at this, but honestly he was considering it... but not alone with Sakura. He'd end up killing himself or something.

"Hn. You wanna come Dobe?" He said casually. Naruto tried to think of something else he could've said, not believing Sasuke would be around anyone. When he couldn't he let out a small, genuine smile and spoke.

"Sure! You want to come Haku-chan?" He said cheerily. Haku smiled and nodded. She had an hour or two to waste before she had to get her apartment key anyway.

The young shinobi decided to go somewhere rather familiar. Chōji's favourite restaurant; Yakiniku Q. The Genin walked in to find Team Asuma were already there. They were waved over by Asuma when he spotted them so they decided they may as well join the group.

"Hey guys!" Said Chōji Akimichi, the... big boned... member of Team Asuma

"Oh it's you guys... how troublesome." Said Shikamaru Nara. The Lazy strategist of Team Asuma

"SASUKE-KUN!" Said Ino Yamanaka, the blond fan girl of said team.

"Well well well, if it isn't Kakashi's team. You guys just come back from a mission?" Asked Asuma Sarutobi, son of the Hokage. He heard they had gone on a C-ranked escort mission to Wave. Something about a bridge.

"Yeah, it was an escort mission." Sasuke said dryly, not wanting to allow Naruto the opportunity to give a very... detailed... recollection of the mission. Asuma raised an eyebrow at the blunt answer before continuing.

"Anything interesting happen?" He said, knowing that Kakashi was in some sort of trouble from some ANBU that walked in earlier who he'd briefly overheard saying the Hokage was ranting on a Masked, gravity defying grey haired Jounin. This time Sasuke couldn't stop the exuberant blond.

"You bet your ass something interesting happened, we ran into Zabuza Momochi!" He said loudly. At this every shinobi in the restaurant dropped dead silent. Asuma was in a state of shock while his team was a little confused as to why that got such a large reaction out of their usually rather laid-back sensei.

"Z-Zabuza Momochi?! The 'Demon of the Mist'? A-rank missing nin?" He said, unable to hold back his surprise and scepticism. His teams eye's widened at this, Naruto's team took on an A-rank missing nin?

"The one and only!" He said.

Asuma blinked. "And?" He said

"What do you mean?" Naruto replied with confusion plastered across his face. Asuma sighed, remembering who he was dealing with.

"I mean, what happened? Did you beat him? Did your mission succeed or fail? Y'know, that kind of thing." He said. Sasuke sighed, tired of Naruto's long-ass stories and the fact that he was starving wasn't helping.

"Long story short, we ran into the demon brothers, beat them and then Zabuza showed up and got beaten by Kakashi. Then Haku here..." He pointed at the girl. "...who was working with Zabuza at the time, saved his ass." He said, earning stares from all around to centre on the girl.

She shrunk slightly under their gazes, before she finished the story. "After I saved Zabuza-sama he took a week to recover, then when we attacked again I was beaten by Naruto-kun and Kakashi killed Zabuza-sama." She said sadly. "Then, seeing as I had nowhere to go and was no longer their enemy I came here to the Leaf." She concluded.

"The Hokage just let you in?" Said Shikamaru, earning a shake of the head from Haku. He took this as a sign that she was going to clear up the situation.

"The Hokage made me explain to him my reasons for coming here, my skill set and my loyalties. He concluded that I was safe to allow in the village under a few conditions." She said, earning a nod from Shikamaru. If the Hokage trusted the girl, he had no arguments, Sasuke, tiring of this conversation decided to end it.

"If we're done I am rather hungry." He said with barely hidden irritation. Ino decided to try to woo him. She didn't quite get the message during their academy days.

"Oh~ Sasuke-kun you can share with me if you want." She said, tapping the free seat to her side. Sasuke simply rolled his eyes and sat next to Naruto, who had an end seat next to him. The idiot was the only person he could remotely stand, which was weird considering how loud the guy was.

"Oh by the way, I'm Shikamaru Nara, the loud blond girl is Ino Yamanaka and the guy at my right is Chōji Akamichi." Shikamaru said to Haku who smiled somewhat nervously and replied.

"It's a pleasure to meet you all. My name is Haku Yuki." She said, immediately drawing the attention of the Jounin at the table.

"Yuki? As in the Yuki clan?" Asuma asked, intrigued at the concept of the Leaf gaining a new clan – with a **Kekkei Genkai **no less.** Kekkei Genkai **were game changers by nature, always an ace on the battlefield.

"Yes. I am the last known member of my clan, Zabuza-sama took me in at a young age and I've been traveling with him since then." She said glumly. Asuma looked at her sadly, knowing she was upset about this.

"Well looks like you and Sasuke have plenty to talk about." Muttered Shikamaru, though nobody heard him.

"Enough with all that, time to eat!" Chōji remarked loudly.

The dinner was going nicely, everyone was having a good time. Sakura and Ino were obviously butting heads over Sasuke while he was being unsociable but besides that everyone was chatting. Though Haku didn't have much experience with people and mainly chatted with Naruto.

Ino had been mostly ignoring said girl in her little feud with Sakura but eventually remembered she was there and decided to speak with her.

"So, Haku was it?" She asked receiving a nod. "Are you... interested in anyone?" She asked.

Haku didn't quite catch her drift, again not having a great deal of interaction with other people during her time with Zabuza. "What do you mean Ino?"

Ino blinked at this. "What? You know, do you like any guys? Maybe Sasuke-kun, I mean I wouldn't blame you, just look at him." She said raising an eyebrow playfully and glancing at him.

Haku thought about this for a second, before a certain blond entered her mind. She blushed at this, still not really understanding why she was reacting like this. She had been around people, she didn't reveal her true gender to any of them but she _had_ been around plenty of people, so why was she reacting like this when she thought of the blond? It must have been because he was precious to her. Yeah, that was it.

"I don't believe I have any... interests... at the moment Ino." She said, making the girl sigh before going back to what she was doing. Haku however was still contemplating the question. She would have to properly think this over later.

The dinner went by smoothly from this point on, both teams exchanging embarrassing tales of crappy D-rank missions that they'd been on since they graduated the academy and things that they had learned. When it came to what they had been taught by their Jounin sensei things began to get interesting again.

"So, what'd you guys learn from Kakashi-sensei?" Asked Chōji

"Uh... well we've done teamwork exercises and the tree-climbing exercise... and... that's it." Naruto said regrettably. Asuma immediately cut in here, not believing his ears.

"You're joking? That's all he's taught you since you left the academy?" He asked, receiving nods from Team 7. "...that's horrible, you are supposed to be taught physical conditioning and personal Taijutsu styles right out of the academy! How could Kakashi let you go on a C-rank mission with nothing but tree-climbing?" He spoke, a little angry at his fellow elite Jōnin.

"Uh actually... we learned that on the mission..." Naruto corrected. Asuma's jaw dropped at this. What was Kakashi thinking? Was he trying to get these kids killed?

"Well I bet my dad is gonna have fun with your sensei if that comes up." He said sighing. He was going to have such a headache after all this.

With all that cleared up the dinner finally ended and everyone went on their way. Team Asuma went on their merry way while Team 7 decided to say goodnight to one-another.

"See you guys tomorrows, I'll go with Haku to see Jiji." Said Naruto with a grin. The other Genin still couldn't believe how he spoke about the Hokage, the strongest person in the village but they resolved to question it another time.

"Yeah, see you Dobe, Sakura, Haku." Sasuke said before walking off. Sakura looked his way before speaking quickly to the other two.

"Cya Naruto! Cya Haku!" She said before running after Sasuke and shouting. "Sasuke-kun wait! I'll walk with you." Sasuke started running at this while Naruto and Haku sweat-dropped before walking toward the Hokage tower.

"So Haku..." Naruto started, getting the girls attention. "...what do you think about Konoha so far? D'you like it?" He said with a somewhat neutral expression. He hoped she liked it here.

She smiled at him warmly. "Yes, it's lovely. I can tell that I'll be happy here. Maybe one day I can restart my clan here." She mused absently before looking at Naruto and blushing a deep crimson. Naruto raised an eyebrow at this.

_'Girls are weird, first Hinata and now Haku. Eh, I'm sure they are fine.'_ He thought to himself as they continued in silence. However soon the innocence of the situation would be ruined.

As they were walking through the Market District Haku noticed people were avoiding them and starting. She focused her senses and way shocked by what she heard.

"Look, there's the Demon brat!"

"Why is he even still here? The village would be better without him!"

"Why can't he just disappear?"

All these things and more were being whispered in their direction and she looked at Naruto. What she saw nearly broke her heart. While his expression still seemed normal, his eyes were showing that he was in turmoil; his heart was being shattered as he just walked and did nothing to protect himself.

She couldn't contain her anger and dragged him into a nearby alley so that she could get away from the stares, glares and hateful comments.

"Naruto-kun! What the hell was that about?!" She all but shouted, "Why are they being so cruel to you?!"

He sighed and lowered his head. "I can't tell you Haku-chan. I... don't want you to hate me." He spoke with rare sadness in his voice. Haku actually seemed to get more angry at this.

"Why would I hate you? Do you not trust me to believe in you? Do you think I'm some horrible person who would just toss you aside for the smallest of things?" She said.

"No!" He answered quickly. "But... it's a pretty big deal and I don't want it to come between us." He said.

"Is it your fault? She said

"Well, no but..." He said

"Did you ask for whatever it is?"

"No, it's just..."

"Have YOU. EVER. Done anything against this village?"

"Well I did a lot of pranks..."

"Then as far as I'm concerned you are as much a victim as I was as a child." She spoke confidently.

"R...Really?" He said softly. _'Would she really not care? Would she accept me? No, she thinks she will, but once she find out what it is she'll just be scared of me and avoid me.'_

"Yes Naruto-kun. I really do." She said comfortingly, grabbing his hand and smiling at him.

"Well.. could you... give me some time? To think about it? Please?" He said.

"Of course Naruto-kun, but you will tell me, understood?" She said playfully. Naruto regained his smile at his and looked right at her.

"Yes Ma'am!" He said exuberantly.

"Good." She concluded. They left the alley and resumed their walk to the Hokage tower, though this time they decided to walk a little faster to avoid as many people as they could. Naruto was still hurt by the comments and stares but he seemed happier after their talk.

_'Maybe... Maybe she won't care. Maybe she'll accept me.'_ He thought with a smile. It made him wonder though, why did her friendship matter so much so him? The idea of her leaving him made him physically sick. He'd figure out in future he thought to himself.

**-Back at the Hokage Tower-**

While Haku and Naruto were about to walk into the Hokage office Kakashi emerged from the office looking like he'd just figured out his books were burnt. He looked at them before lowering his head and shuffling slowly back home. The question is, why not Shunshin? Why do ninja walk anywhere?

Naruto was cut out of his musings by Haku waving in front of his face. He blinked quickly before smiling and following her inside the office.

Upon entering the Hokage looked rather angry before resettling his face into a neutral expression upon seeing them. "Ah, Haku-chan, Naruto-kun." He said while raising from his desk and walking around to them.

"Here's the key to your apartment, it's in the west district of the village in a blue painted apartment complex, third floor room 56." He said handing her a key. She smiled at the elder Kage before giving him a quick thank you.

"Now as I said you'll be with Team 7 for the next month but you won't be doing missions during this time. As such you will receive an allowance from myself until you are free to do missions. It should cover your daily expenses. If you need anything I'm here most of the time." He said with a grandfatherly smile.

"Thank you Hokage-sama, you are very generous." She said professionally, to which Naruto shook his head. Why did everyone act so professional around him? He was just an old closet pervert!

"Now then I'll get back to my..." He looked at his desk where the paperwork pile had seemingly grown since he stood up. "Paperwork." He said through clenched teeth. Haku let out a small giggle at this to which Naruto raised an eyebrow at. This caused her to blush and turn away.

'Hmm, seems Naruto has quite the effect on our newest kunoichi... interesting.' The elderly Hokage mused. 'Still he needs to wear something a little more... desirable if he really wants to get any positive attention.' He thought slightly irritated, Naruto's outfit was – in a word – disgusting. It was an eyesore in all meanings of the word.

"Hai, Hokage-sama/Sure think Jiji!" They replied, before turning and walking out the door.

'I really should be a little more concerned about letting him call me that in public. Eh, it's not like I really care, I like that little knuckle-head.' He thought before going back to his paperwork...

...Which has again seemed to multiply.

"WHERE IS THIS ALL COMING FROM?!" He said before looking at Minato's portrait. "HOW DID YOU DO IT?!" He shouted, making all the 'shadows' in the room groan and sweat-drop. "Hey I don't pay you to judge me!" He said before grumbling about stupid blond geniuses and going back to work.

**-At Haku's Apartment-**

After about 10-15 minutes of searching they managed to find Haku's new apartment. It was nice enough, with a kitchen, bathroom, living room and a free room for personal use. It was pretty spacious – at least compared to Naruto's apartment – and had already been furnished well enough. The wallpaper is a cyan blue with the occasion ripple pattern in yellow.

There was a table in the middle of the room with some coasters and a flower pot with a few lilies in the middle of the table. There was a bookshelf with a couple of books about Chakra control exercises and the history of the shinobi world and the Leaf Village in specific. There are a few basic wooden seats around the table and some painting on the wall showing the Leaf village and other noteworthy places. There was also a porch with a double-windowed door facing towards the village.

The bedroom had a wardrobe, with some kunoichi suited clothing in there, a chest of drawers, a single bed with a flower patterned blanket. There was also a chest under the bed for item storage along with a bedside table. There was a window above the bed showing the garden behind the apartment complex.

The kitchen had everything you'd expect, an oven, fridge/freezer, a sink etc. It had a counter for preparing meals along with some cupboards for food storage. It had two windows on one side of the room showing the Leaf Village in its full glory and one on the right showing the forest outside the Leaf.

All in all, it was a pretty nice place.

"This is a really nice place Haku-chan, maybe I should ask for a temporary house." He said off-handedly. He'd forgotten that she'd seen the way he was treated and so she knew what he meant with little effort.

"What's your apartment like? Is it... bad?" She asked, a little afraid for the answer. Naruto inwardly cursed, for bringing the topic up. He sighed, and continued.

"It's not awful, but it's not great either... it's... liveable, I guess." He said casually, obviously having come to terms with his... conditions.

"All right then." She said sadly.

"I guess I should be going then, see you tomorrow Haku-chan." He said with a smile waiting for her answer before turning to leave.

"I guess so, see you at training Naruto-kun." She said, giving him a small hug, not finding it weird in the slightest. He smiled and walked out.

She went through some of her books for the next hour or so before she found a book that interested her. She found a book labelled 'The Rise and Fall of Uzushiogakure'. After reading through the whole thing she had one thought on her mind.

"Uzumaki clan?"

**-With Naruto at his Apartment-**

Naruto lay on his bed and let out a huge sigh. The day had been quite long, and not to mention Haku figuring out about his treatment already. He decided to ignore it and walked to his kitchen but found something interesting. A message and what looked like a slip of Paper.

"_Hey Naruto, I got a bit of advice from the Hokage about the way I train you so I got you this. It's called Chakra Paper. If you channel you chakra into it one of 5 things will happen depending on your elemental nature affinity. Your affinity determines what elements you will be best at using. If you have a Fire affinity the paper will ignite and turn to ash__. __If you have a wind affinity the paper will split in two. If you have a Lightning affinity the paper will wrinkle. If you have an Earth Affinity the paper will turn to stone and crumble away and if you have a water affinity the paper will become wet or damp._

_From, Kakashi_

_See you tomorrow at 6 am."_

"Huh, that's cool..." He said and picked up the chakra paper. He channelled chakra into it for a few seconds before it split in two. However it was what happened next that confused him.

Instead of crumbling away, it turned to stone and began to sparkle in small places.

What could it mean?

**-End-**

**And that's chapter 2 my friends! So, two interesting developments in this chapter while we settle Haku into the village. Did you want more action? If so, I apologise but I really wanted to get all this out of the way.**

**Anyway, post a review and tell me what you guys think.**

**LiamMorg out.**

**Ja Ne!**


	3. Training and Revelations

**I don't own Naruto ye Land Lubbers! I be too busy sailin' te seven seas for that stuff maties! 'cough' Anywho... Let's uh, carry on shall we?**

**Chapter 3: Training and Revelations.**

**-Start-**

Naruto and Haku were both rather confused at the moment. Both had discovered something they were not intending or ever expecting. Haku had discovered the lovable blond idiot that she had been around for a while now was part of a clan. Not just some normal clan either, they were essentially on par with the Senju since they literally built their own village.

She was rather saddened by the fact that it was stated that the clan was wiped out however, but that led her to think about something. Did the blond even know what his name meant? She had no way of knowing without asking, and since he had no family it was uncertain if he was told.

There was an unspoken rule that clans names belonging to clans the size and importance of the Uzumaki were not ever to be given to one who is not of said clan, so the blond was definitely related to the Uzumaki's. The more she thought about it the more confused she got.

It did explain one thing though – why he was able to churn out so many damn clones. The Uzumaki life force and chakra was apparently quite legendary. Makes sense considering they were an off-shoot of the Senju clan.

She felt the beginning of a headache and decided to leave it there for now, she would ask said blond tomorrow.

Naruto however was trying to decipher what the strange reaction the chakra paper had meant. Kakashi said if the paper turned to stone and crumbled that you had an Earth affinity. However, he didn't say anything about it turning to stone and sparkling.

Maybe he was special? _'Yeah right...'_ he thought. _'I'm just some clan-less orphan, what would be special about me? I would be told if I had some secret ability... right?'_ He continued to himself. The thought wouldn't go away though.

_'Jiji did say I was born on the day of the Kyuubi attack. Maybe my parents were special but he doesn't know who they were?'_ He thought. He continued thinking about this before getting bored and giving up.

"Eh, I'll tell Kakashi-sensei tomorrow... maybe he has some more chakra paper." He said to... no one. Then he crawled into bed and decided to sleep the day off. If there was one thing good about any day – it was sleep. Beautifully simple yet so enjoyable. Yep, sleep was great.

**-Next Day-**

Naruto rose from his bed feeling much better, the night having washed away his anxiety. His mind hadn't stopped pondering the chakra paper though, and then there was the fact that he'd have to tell Haku his secret at some point. He sighed, wondering how he got into this mess.

He was about to have a quick breakfast when he heard a knock on his porch window. He looked over to see his teacher, Kakashi Hatake just standing there. Like a scarecrow. A creepy one-eyed scarecrow. He walked over to the door, unlocked it and let him in.

"What's up sensei?" He said somewhat bored. He was up wasn't he? It's not like he was late for training... wait... was he? He checked his lock. _'05:25, I still have plenty of time.'_ He thought idly before turning back to his teacher.

"Oh nothing important Naruto, just wanted to bring you this!" He said, holding out an assortment of random... healthy foods. Naruto blanched before sighing. He was sighing a lot since the wave mission, must be stress.

"I assume you want me to eat healthier, right sensei?" He said, getting a nod in return. "Dammit... fine. I'll eat your stupid fruits and vegetables." He continued, walking towards his table to start preparing his breakfast. Kakashi simply smiled at how easy his Genin were to control.

"Is that all or do you want something else sensei?" Naruto called over to him, without turning from his breakfast. He couldn't waste time now could he?

"I was wondering if you got my other little gift." He said, earning a nod from Naruto before he realized this was the best way to bring this up.

"Yeah I did... something... weird happened when I used it." He said. Kakashi raised an eye-brow at this. He was wondering what could've happened. Maybe he had a strong affinity for wind like his father, since Kakashi knew his parents rather well. He'd never tell the blond without permission of course, but he thought of himself like an older brother to the kid.

"Oh really? What happened, you have a strong affinity for something?" He said casually, not wanting to give anything away. Naruto shrugged and looked at his ceiling, as though in deep thought.

"Well I'm not really sure, the paper cut in half which shows I have a wind affinity, but it was another thing which confused me. It wasn't on your list at all. Well, it was half on the list I guess." He said. Kakashi was growing increasingly interested at this. Did the blond have a gift?

"Show me." He said seriously, holding out another piece of chakra paper. "Just do what you did yesterday, I'll tell you what it mean." He continued. _'If I can that is...'_ He mused. Naruto grabbed the chakra paper and began to concentrate. Like he said, it split in two. And just like he said it did something rather interesting. It turned to stone and began to sparkle in the light.

_'Amazing.'_ Thought Kakashi. _'I have no idea what this means, I've never seen that before... maybe he has a very strong Earth affinity? It's a much my guess as anyone else's.'_ He concluded. Noticing the blonds attention was on him he decided to make an excuse for now.

"Well Naruto it appears as if you have a very powerful Earth affinity. That's very good, as you have the most defensive element along with the most offensive!" He said cheerily. However he wasn't sure if that was the extent of the story. "Well anyway I'll see you at training! Ja Ne!" He said before using the Shunshin to leave. Naruto raised an eyebrow at the sudden exit. Oh well, he'd see him in half an hour anyway.

After eating, a quick shower and getting dressed he picked up his equipment and headed to the usual training ground. He groaned, like he was actually going to learn anything. Then again, he did test their affinities, maybe he was planning to teach them some kick-ass jutsu!

He scoffed. '_Yeah right.'_

**-At Training Ground 7-**

The majority of Team 7 besides Naruto was already at the training ground. Sasuke was first there, since he had no hobby and was generally a hard ass, followed by Haku who knew the importance of punctuality and then Sakura. The group saw a small blond blur in the distance and knew who it was.

"Hey guys! Good morning!" He said to them after coming to a stop with a small smile. Haku noticed he seemed a little... off. More serious than usual. Maybe he'd discovered something important since last night. "So, what are your affinities guys?" He asked happily.

Sasuke grunted before saying. "Lightning. Small fire." He wasn't really happy about this. Uchiha were primarily Katon users. He'd already gotten his anger out the last night though, so he could at least keep up his oh-so-important air of indifference.

Sakura smiled and said "I got Water. I think it suits me pretty well, not like those dangerous ones or messy like Earth." She finished. Everyone sweat-dropped at this, she was a Kunoichi for Kami's sake. Naruto sighed before continuing.

"Cool, I got Wind and a strong Earth!" He said. The word 'strong' caught everyones attention. How did he know if it was strong or not?

"What do you mean strong Dobe?" Sasuke said, actually interested in what he said. Naruto just smiled and replied. "Well, Kakashi-sensei gave us that list of what the affinities looked like on the paper right?" He said earning nods. "Well my Earth affinity did something different than the list said, and Kakashi-sensei came to my house this morning so I just asked him what it meant." He finished. The Genin were quite surprised by this, but none more so than Haku.

_'Chakra paper isn't supposed to do unique things unless there are special circumstances involved. My first use of it made it freeze, because of my **Kekkei Genkai**. What did his do?'_ She thought, squinting her eyes at him. "Naruto-kun, what did your chakra paper do?" She asked.

He looked at her and answered casually. "Well it was supposed to turn to stone and crumble... but mine turned to stone and started to sparkle in certain places." He answered. Haku raised an eyebrow at this, that didn't seem like a strong affinity. _'That reminds me, I need to talk to him about the Uzumaki clan later.'_ She thought passively.

"Alright that's enough of that."

The Genin turned around to see Kakashi standing atop a post. Naruto smiled up at him while Sakura was about to scream at him about his lateness...

Before realizing he wasn't late.

"K...Kak...Kakashi-sensei... your... your on time!" She said, shocked by the fact that he was capable of being on time even remotely.

"Yes well I decided that we needed to be a bit more serious about your training, so here I am!" He said. _'And the Sandaime threatened to outlaw Icha Icha if I didn't'_ He thought. Then he decided to continue.

"We are going to be doing physical conditioning and speed training for now. It became clear to me in Wave that you aren't all in shape to do your jobs effectively. Also I will be evaluating your Taijutsu styles to see if you are using them correctly or if they aren't suited to you." He said earning nods.

"Haku, Sasuke you two are already rather fast so we will be working on your strength and Taijutsu." He said, earning more nods.

"Naruto, you need to improve your speed and your Taijutsu since I couldn't help but notice you don't really have any sort of style befitting a Shinobi." He continued. Naruto decided to be clear what he meant by this.

"What do you mean sensei? My Taijutsu seems fine!" He said indignantly. Kakashi chuckled at this, the boy was so easy to rile up.

"What I mean Naruto is you swing your fists like a brawler. Ninja don't just use their hands, you must attune your whole body to the fight. You must be able to hit hard but also correct yourself quickly if you miss. I've noticed you just throw all your weight into your blows and hope they connect, and if they don't you leave yourself wide open. We also need to work on your blocking, dodging and parrying." He said, as if reading from a textbook. Then he noticed Naruto was sitting on the ground with a storm cloud over his head and laughed.

"Lastly Sakura. You need... just about everything." He said casually. The girl face faulted at this, but realized he wasn't wrong. She has done barely any training at all. She just sighed and nodded.

"Haku, Sasuke. You two will be wearing weights and going through Taijutsu Kata's to increase your familiarity with them while also boosting your muscle mass." He said. Then he turned to Naruto.

"Naruto, you will also be wearing weights, but you will be doing laps of the clearing and then you will come to me so we can work on finding you a Taijutsu style." He said. Then he turned to the pink haired member of the team.

"Lastly, Sakura. You will be doing all these things. However you will be doing less of each and we'll work on rounding you out more before specializing you a bit more." He said calmly, earning a groan.

"Well then, Let's get to it!" He said happily.

**-Two Weeks Later-**

The training was – to put it simply – hell. Kakashi was a hell of a slave-driver. They couldn't argue with the results though, they were already starting to see some improvements. Naruto was getting faster and with his indomitable stamina he could keep going for a long time. Sasuke and Haku were getting more precise with their Taijutsu styles and seemed a stronger. Sakura was getting better all around.

Kakashi managed to find a Taijutsu style that served Naruto rather well. It focused on using feints and various distractions to land blows on the more vulnerable areas the enemy's body. By working on pranks all his life, Naruto was a natural genius when it came to coming up with distractions and using feints. Hell, he managed to hit Kakashi a few times!

Sakura was a different case. Kakashi decided strength training may not actually be necessary for her if she could master Chakra-infused Taijutsu, which he was certain she could with her Chakra control. Then he managed to find her a quick and precise style that blended well with this, as a quick chakra infused punch on an important area could end the fight immediately.

Now that Sasuke had awakened his **Sharingan **he was finding the Uchiha Taijutsu style to be leagues better than before, since it was intended to be used with the **Sharingan **to begin with. He was now capable of accurately keep up with enemy strikes and calculate where to dodge/block/parry effectively. He decided to work on speed and reaction time in his free time since just seeing an attack didn't mean he could block it.

Haku needed a lot of work on her Taijutsu, having specialized in Ninjutsu and Hand sign speed, along with precise use of senbon. The girl was using a style similar to Sakura, one that required a lot of speed with the bare minimum amount of strength. She decided to use her knowledge of pressure points and the human body in her Taijutsu. This allowed her to paralyse and disable limbs with so much as a touch.

All in all it was a rather productive couple of weeks. Kakashi was wondering why he waited so long to start teaching them, it was so much fun to see them fall and complain!

"Alright my cute little Genin... that's enough for today. I'm very proud of your progress, but don't get upset if you think you are progressing too slow. Physical conditioning takes a LONG time to master. Don't expect to advance too quickly." He said with a smile. All the Genin just grumbled about stupid slave driving sensei's.

"Well I'll see you all here tomorrow same time okay? Bye!" He said before using a Leaf Shunshin to go... wherever he goes in his off hours. The Genin all sighed and wordlessly walked away. Sasuke with Sakura (by with I mean followed by) and Naruto with Haku.

"Hey Naruto-kun?" The ice user said. "Could you come to my apartment with me, I need to talk to you about something." She said nervously. Naruto raised an eyebrow at this but just went with it. He was far too tired to argue.

"Sure." He said tiredly. They then walked in silence. Haku was silent because she was wondering how he'd react to the news and Naruto was silent because he was worried about what she wanted to talk about. Maybe she'd make him spill the beans about Kyuubi? Oh well, too late to run away now. Not that he could run any time soon.

**-At Haku's Apartment-**

After a rather uncomfortably silent walk the duo arrived at Haku's apartment. She promptly let them in before ushering him to take a seat at her table. They were silent for a while until Haku could find a way to ease into the topic. She found a way, and went with it.

"So tell me Naruto-kun, how much do you know about your surname?" She asked cryptically. Naruto was confused by the way she phrased the question but replied regardless.

"Nothing I guess, it was given to me by Jiji because he didn't know who my parents were. _Or so he says"_ He said, keeping the last part under his breath. Haku sighed. This was going to take a while, he didn't know the slightest thing.

"What if I told you that the Uzumaki were the founding clan of Uzushiogakure. 'The Village of Longevity' as it's so called." She said softly, knowing his world was going to be turned upside down by this revelation.

"Well I'd say..." He said, before realizing what she said. "WHAT?!" He shouted. Haku forsaw this reaction and simply handed him the book she learned all this from. He looked at the cover for a moment before reading it. Once he started reading about his clan, he was ecstatic. He wasn't just a nobody, he was a part of a clan! Alas it was not the end of the book.

Once he'd finished, he looked heartbroken. His clan was destroyed before he even learned who they were. It said nothing about survivors. For all he knew, he was the last of his clan.

"I... had a clan... and... they are all gone." He said, his voice breaking. He started to tear up when Haku raised from her seat and began to comfort him.

"It's all right Naruto-kun. I know exactly how you feel. I know, it'll be okay." She spoke softly, allowing him to cry on her shoulder. _'We have so much in common, don't we? It's like fate that we met, even under the circumstances we did.'_ She thought happily. He was the first person to accept her besides Zabuza and they were the same. That small thought comforted her more than she could believe, they could always relate to one another.

Once he'd stopped crying, he didn't break their embrace. No, despite everything he actually deepened it. This surprised the girl, but for whatever reason she couldn't break it either. It was _warm._ It made her happy just... being like this. She couldn't help but wonder why she enjoyed this so much, why the blond had such an effect on her.

After a few minutes they finally separated and blushed equal shades of crimson and turning away. Haku simply placed her fist in front of her mouth while Naruto rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. Haku decided to ease the awkwardness.

"So uh, what do you plan to do about... this?" She said. Naruto blinked, before realizing what she was referring to.

"I guess I'll go see Jiji about it some time, but I don't know why he'd keep this from me. He knows how much I've wanted to learn about my parents..." He said sadly before Haku got a shot in. She couldn't let him blame the man before he'd even asked.

"Maybe he had a good reason, remember the book said your clan was destroyed for their rising power. Maybe he didn't tell you so you wouldn't spread the information around." She said with a hint of certainty. Naruto just sighed.

"Yeah I guess your right. I'll go talk to him tomorrow." He said. Haku smiled at this, happy she could ease his tension. Then she had a thought.

"Naruto, have you ever thought about trying to raise your intelligence?" She said professionally, trying not to actually call him stupid. Naruto furrowed his brow at this. He wasn't that stupid! Was he?

"Not really, why." He said neutrally.

"Well, I was just thinking. Zabuza-sama once told me the greatest weapon for a ninja is his mind. You could have a thousand jutsu, but without the intelligence to use them correctly you would just be wasting your time. For example, when we fought on the bridge you ran straight into my mirrors without even thinking. You may have been more help outside them." She said, obviously daring him to doubt her statement. He couldn't, obviously.

"...I guess I can't argue with that can I?" He said with a pout. Haku giggled at this, he looked so cute when he did that. FUNNY... that's what she meant... not cute, funny... yeah.

"While your at it you may as well change your outfit too. Orange is not a ninja's colour." She said with a playful grin, knowing he'd complain this time. Naruto's jaw dropped. Why, why was everyone so against orange?!

"WHAT?! Orange is the perfect colour!" He bellowed. She laughed at that, his reactions were really comedy gold. 'Her laugh is so nice.' he thought absently.

"If you say so, but would it really hurt to get something a bit more suited to the profession. You could get a mask too! Speaking of which, I need a new one thanks to a certain someone." She said with a smirk. Naruto huffed at this, he didn't make her attack him. He didn't exactly have a choice.

"Fine. MOM." He said sarcastically. Haku just looked irritated at this. Naruto began to sweat and put up his hands disarmingly. "Well... to be honest, most shops... wont serve me..." He said, knowing that she'd probably ask him about you-know-what.

"Oh. I see." She said. "Well in that case why don't I help you shop? Or better yet you could use a henge or something." She said. Naruto blinked, again... and again.

"I am such an idiot." He said to himself. She just let out a snort of amusement at this, he wasn't wrong.

"Well we can start working on that right now can't we? I have plenty of books thanks to the Hokage. Read some now, or borrow them and give 'em back when your done." She said. Naruto grinned at this, she was a kind person.

"Sure thing Haku-chan." He said with an honest smile. This in turn made the girl blush. He sighed and went over to her bookcase. Taking out a basic chakra introductory book. He started reading it while Haku helped him with certain things he couldn't understand. Eventually they both fell asleep, the day catching up with them, but one couldn't miss the happy expressions they fell asleep with.

**-Outside Haku's Apartment, after the Duo Just Entered-**

A certain girl with shoulder-length blue hair and pupil-less white eyes with a touch of lavender watched as the source of her obsession and a girl she did not recognise entered the apartment complex. She gripped the pole she was next to hard. Anger evident in her eyes.

_'That BITCH!'_ She thought. Little did anyone know, but that girl was going to be a very different person soon enough, She then stormed off back to the Hyūga compound to take out her frustrations on something, Maybe her sister wanted another spar, well this time she wouldn't hold back.

Little did Naruto know, but he'd changes the girl for worse. That girl was named Hinata Hyūga. Heiress of the Hyūga clan, and it was time for her to stop playing around.

**-A Month Later-**

Two weeks passed and Team 7 continued to train until they couldn't and then some. The results were becoming readily apparent to outsides. Thanks to his Physical training and healthier diet, Naruto started to grow a little, he was maybe an inch or two higher than before. His body was beginning to look more muscular, more slim and fit. As much as could come out of a couple of weeks of tor... I mean...training anyway.

Haku was noticeably better at Taijutsu. Her style was beginning to become natural to her, testing it in spars against the others. So far the only one she could beat was Sakura. Against Naruto they were about even and Sasuke rarely lost at Taijutsu, the Uchiha style and the **Sharingan** making him far too difficult to defeat. She also began to form a more attractive figure. Now there was no doubt to her gender, even if there was little doubt before.

Sakura was beginning to show skill as a kunoichi. There were obviously a lot of kinks to work out but now she was finally beginning to become a respectable Genin. Kakashi convinced her to stop dieting and to eat more nutritiously. This along with her physical training meant she was now far more energetic than before. She was developing more attractively as well, but alas the forehead was still there.

Sasuke. Well, he was already the best out the bunch – physically at least, Haku was the best all rounded – but even so he was showing improvement. His Taijutsu style was now second nature to him and his strength and speed training were helping to keep up with the enemies blows rather well. He had already been eating healthily and training well so he stayed mostly the same over the period of time. Obviously muscles became more apparent, but that was about it.

After a while of ranting from Haku, Naruto finally got a new outfit. It consisted of a mesh-armor shirt, A black jacket with a high collar and an orange inside (he couldn't go without orange COMPLETELY!), dark blue ANBU-style trousers (pants for those so inclined), finger-less black gloves and some black sandals. All in all, it was a much better look for him.

Now Haku couldn't look at him without blushing, his figure no longer hidden. He was getting awfully confused about that.

To be fair though, he was taking notice of her too, but despite the fact he'd been improving his mind over the last two weeks, he was still pretty clueless about the female population.

Speaking of which, his intellect was improving at an astonishing rate. It made Haku question if he had ever been taught anything... ever. He was like a natural genius, easily soaking up anything. Little did she know he inherited that little detail from his father. Speaking of Parents, that brings us back to a small 'chat' with the Sandaime.

_**!Flashback no Jutsu!**_

_Naruto walked into the Hokage tower alone. He didn't want Haku around for this, knowing he was very likely to get very upset. This was a week after their chat as he had been busy training from that point until now. His matured mind would help him a lot in this matter. He'd still call him Jiji though, you can't just train that out._

_He walked into the old office and – surprisingly enough – there was no paperwork. Funny how since he stopped pulling pranks people the paperwork started to decline. Yes... funny. Not in anyway because his pranks CAUSED the paperwork. Nope._

"_Jiji." He spoke calmly, the man raised an eyebrow before raising the other and dropping his jaw for good measure. The boy looked completely different, more muscle, new clothes, he was even a little taller! Hell even his eyes looked a little different, showing a more trained mind._

"_Y..yes Naruto-kun?" He said, trying to control himself. "What can I do for you my boy?" He continued, now that he was over his shock he was thrilled. The boy looked like a true shinobi. Obviously he'd found a good influence._

"_Oh nothing special. I'd just like to ask you about UZUSHIOGAKURE!" He said with sarcasm dripping from his mouth, and then obvious anger as he spoke of his ancestors village. The Hokage widened his eyes at this, how did he know?!_

"_I guess you found out then? About your lineage?" He said, earning a slight snort. "Well then I suppose I can't lie any longer. Yes, you are a member of the Uzumaki clan and your mother was also a member." He said seriously._

"_Why. Wasn't. I. TOLD?" He spoke angrily. The Hokage sighed and continued._

"_Because, the enemies of the Uzumaki clan still exist. If the world found out about your lineage you may have been kidnapped. Like Kumo tried to do to your mother. Kushina Uzumaki." He said seriously, silently patting himself on the back for such a good excuse. The lie was more to do with his father than anything. _

_The boy calmed down a little at his. 'Guess I should have listened to Haku... he did have a good excuse. Is it just that though? An excuse. Ah I can get that information easily.' He thought with a grin._

"_Oh? And my Father?" He said, barely containing his smug expression. The Hokage just blinked at this, he'd been found out, by Naruto! He was so different from a week ago! 'Damn whoever convinced him to study.'_

"_I... can't tell you about him Naruto-kun." He said nervously. The boy rolled his eyes. Hiruzen continued. "However I can give you all the things regarding your mother and her possessions, if you'd like." He said smiling. 'I'll get him with this deal.' He thought._

_Naruto inwardly cursed, he couldn't turn that down. "Fine Jiji, that'll be fine." He said grudgingly. _

_Hiruzen did an internal dance at a well executed plan._

"_I'll have them sent to your apartment." He said before Naruto nodded and left._

_'Man that was close, aye Minato?' Thought the elderly Hokage._

_**!Flashback no Jutsu! Kai!**_

Back to the present, Team 7 were standing at training ground 7 with their sensei, Kakashi, waiting for him to tell them what they'd be doing for the day.

"Now then Team 7 first I'd like to say that I'm very impressed with your recent progress and I don't bet you could take on most new Chunnin!" He said happily. Everyone – even Sasuke, who had started to lighten up since the Wave mission – smiled at this proclamation.

"Now then, today we will finally be working on your affinities! Here's what will happen. Sasuke – you will work on your Lightning affinity. Naruto, you will work on Earth. Sakura and Haku will work on Water. Understood?" He said, getting a 'Hai' from the group.

"All right then. Then let's get situated yes?" He said, before moving them away from one another. Well, Haku and Sakura stayed together for obvious reasons. He then gave them their tasks. The girls were to float water over their heads and down to the ground before they had mastered the first test. Naruto was to crush a stone in under 5 seconds with nothing but chakra and Sasuke was to dance lightning around his hand without shocking himself.

Kakashi expected this to take a while. Surprisingly Haku was doing rather well, though she had experience in **Suiton **ninjutsu already. Sasuke was doing OK. Sakura was doing well because of her perfect chakra control. It was Naruto who surprised the man. Well, he'd stopped being surprised since last week, but it was still a sight to see.

Naruto was already able to half crush the rock in about 15 seconds. That was rather incredible. He was wondering if that was the natural talent the blond had been hiding until recently or whether that was due to his rare Earth affinity. He'd never know. Still it was gratifying to see his students doing so well.

Naruto created a single clone while no one was looking and made it do the exercise also. He had learned about the memory feedback while reading through a scroll of clone varieties. He couldn't risk using many as the feedback on his immature mind was far greater than it would be on someone older than him. He didn't want to kill off the braincells he'd just gotten.

After a few hours of this he'd reduced the time to 12 seconds to half crush it and 19 seconds for it to be fully crushed. _'And it'll be lower when I dispel my clone.'_ He mused.

This continued for a while. Haku managed to fully master the first exercise due to her experience and chakra control. Sakura was about 3/5ths of the way there and Sasuke could keep the lightning around his hand for about 18 seconds before he shocked himself.

Naruto - after dispelling his clone – found he could do the whole rock in 5 seconds. He smiled at this and told Kakashi about it. Safe to say that was unexpected, but he was impressed none-the-less. At the end of the day Kakashi spoke to them.

"All right Naruto and Haku have mastered the first exercise so I will teach Naruto some basic **D****ōton **ninjutsu tomorrow while Haku will learn some **Suiton** ninjutsu. Sasuke, Sakura once you complete the exercises we will do the same for you. Now. Dismissed!" He said before he Shunshin'd away.

"Man I need to learn that... hey Haku-chan. You used the Shunshin to escape with Zabuza right?" Spoke Naruto. Haku nodded and knew what he was going to say, so she decided to speak before he could.

"Yes and I'd be more than happy to teach you it." She said with a smile – which again – caused Naruto to smile back.

Thanks a lot Haku-chan, it would really be a life saver. I'm tired of using my feet y'know?" He said somewhat playfully. Haku laughed at this and just nodded before continuing.

"Now then, the only sign to the Shunshin is the Ram sign, then picture your destination and..." She said as she Shunshin'd behind him. "...You're there!" She said happily. Naruto smiled and focused.

"Well then, see you tomorrow Haku-chan!" He said, she returned the gesture before he used his own Shunshin to go home. However the effects surprised Haku, instead of leaves or smoke in this wake...

...There were small pink gems.

**-The Next Day-**

As the group were gathered in Training ground 7, Kakashi once again split them up. He went to Naruto and waited a moment for the boy to ready himself before speaking.

"All right Naruto I have two **D****ōton **jutsu to show you. Once you get the first down I'll show you the second. Understood?" He said, earning a nod and a small smirk. _'FINALLY! JUTSU!'_ The boy thought. No matter the raise of intelligence, he was still an energetic kid.

"All right the first Jutsu is called **D****ō****ton: Dory****ū****s****ō ****(Earth Release: Earth Flow Spears)**. It will create stone spikes from the ground to impale your opponents. The only seal is bird, so have fun!" He said before he **Shunshin'd** to Haku.

"Hey Haku. Like I said to Naruto, I will teach you two basic jutsu. Master the first and I'll give you the second. Understood?" He said, earning a nod.

"All right the first technique is **Suiton: Mizurappa (Water Release: Water Trumpet)**. The signs are dragon, tiger and hare. So, knock yourself out!" He said before he Shunshin'd to a high branch to read his perverted books.

By the end of the week Naruto and Haku had mostly gotten the techniques down while Sakura and Sasuke finished their elemental chakra manipulation exercises. Sasuke was given the** Raiton: Kangekiha (Lightning Release: Wave of Inspiration)** to learn and Sakura was given the same jutsu as Haku.

**-A Few Days Later-**

The four Genin had all learned their 2 elemental Jutsu after a few days. Once Naruto mastered his first he was given the **Doton: Dory****ū****heki (Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall)** to learn, which surprised him given that it was a B-Ranked jutsu. Haku and Sakura were given the **Suiton: Suijinheki (Water Release: Water Formation Wall)** another B-Ranked jutsu. Sasuke was given the **Raij****ū**** Hashiri no Jutsu (Lightning Beast Running Technique).** The genin were all rather happy with their new jutsu. Sasuke had no defensive jutsu since lightning wasn't exactly a defensive element.

Unfortunately for a certain **Hy****ō****ton** user, the team was about to receive a mission. This meant she would be alone for a little while. Maybe she could go find Team Asuma and do something with them.

**-At the Hokage Tower-**

The Team entered the mission assignment chamber to find Iruka sitting at the desk. He hadn't really seen Naruto or the rest of his team since just after they'd gotten back from Wave due to Naruto cutting down on Ramen for... healthier foods. So naturally he was a little taken aback by the boy in front of him with a calm, focused expression.

"Ah Team 7 is here for a C-rank mission Iruka-san." Kakashi said professionally to which his Genin just rolled their eyes in amusement. He was doing it to confuse them at this point.

"Ah...Um. Sure." He said. "How about this, minor bandit disturbances near the border of The Land of Fire and the Land of Rice?" He said quizzically. Kakashi simply nodded and took the file. He ushered his Genin out of the room while Naruto just smiled and winked at Iruka. The man then shook his head, the idiot was still in there at least.

"All right then, even though this mission states that there is minor bandit disturbances remember what I've told you. Expect the unexpected. We could have another A-rank if we're unlucky enough." Said Kakashi, to which his Genin nodded. They made their way home to gather all the necessary equipment before heading out.

After arriving at the gate Naruto was surprised to see Haku there, waiting to see him off. "Hey Haku-chan! What are you doing here?" He asked. She just smirked before hugging him. He was confused by this before hugging her back.

"I'm seeing you off you idiot." She chided playfully. Naruto just rolled his eyes and chuckled, she would also call him an idiot now that he was actually smarter. The guy just couldn't win could he?

"Well I'm glad that this idiot is worth all the trouble." He said, pointing a thumb at himself. She blushed lightly and whispered to herself.

"Yes you are..." He raised an eyebrow, having not quite heard her. "What was that Haku-chan?" He said. She smirked and replied. "I said whatever you say, idiot." He just smirked before turning to leave.

"I'll be back soon enough Haku-chan!" He shouted while catching up to his team. She smiled and held her hand over her chest.

"I'll hold you to that, Naruto-kun..." She said to herself before walking back home.

**-Near the Border-**

After a day of almost non-stop travel the group finally stopped to rest. After setting up the tents and hunting for some food the group was just lounging around their camp-site, waiting for the sun to go down. Seeing the blond by himself and Sakura nowhere in sight, Sasuke decided to sit next to the other boy.

"Hey Naruto, what are you doing over here?" He asked casually. The two had bonded a lot since the mission to Wave, they were actually quite good friends now. Not that Sasuke would openly admit that, he liked the blond. Not to mention he'd brightened up a lot and quieted down too. It made it easier to talk to him.

"Oh hey Sasuke. Not much. Just... thinking I guess." He said honestly. Sasuke just smirked at this.

"Would you be thinking about a certain ice queen?" He said, referring to Haku. He used that name whenever the two of them were alone to annoy the blond. Naruto just snorted indignantly and blushed.

"I have no idea what you're talking about Sasuke." He said, not entirely dishonest. He still didn't understand his feeling for the girl and with all the training they were doing he didn't have a lot of time to think.

"Whatever you say Dobe. Whatever you say." He said playfully. Naruto just raised an eyebrow at this before smirking.

"Oh? How about you Sasuke? Thinking about any Pink haired girls?" He said grinning like a madman. Sasuke started to fume at this, Naruto knew he wasn't exactly fond of Sakura. He replied loudly.

"Take that back Dobe!" Naruto just laughed and jumped away. Sasuke smirked and gave chase. "Get back here you idiot, so I can beat some sense into you!" This continued until Sakura returned with water. Sasuke couldn't be seen openly friendly, he wasn't up to it yet!

Naruto just got in his tent and pondered recent events. His thoughts would always linger on Haku, and it would also make him break out in a smile.

**-At the Bandit Camp-**

Kakashi and the Genin had split up, Kakashi went to check around the border while the Genin went to the camp. He figured some experience would do them some good. Oh he'd come to regret that.

They arrived at the camp to see the scene of a huge battle. The camp had been ripped apart, by a lightning user by the looks of things. The Genin were immediately on guard. The Bandits were all dead or unconscious. They hoped whoever did this was long gone. They weren't so lucky though, were they?

A man emerged from one of the tents with a bloody Katana. He had long brown hair and a Kumo headband with a slash through it. This was the indication of a missing-nin. The Genin were worried when they recognised the man, since Kakashi had made them memorize the bingo book just in case.

The man was Fujimoto Kazuma. High Chunnin level shinobi of Kumo, or at least he was when he left... two years ago. He was notorious for his **Raiton **ninjutsu along with his Kenjutsu. He was a high C/Low B-ranked missing nin in the bingo book.

"Well well well, what have we here? A couple of kids from Konoha? Lemme guess, you were here to take out these bandits right? Sorry about that, but everyone needs a payday." He say casually. The Genin were taken aback by his tone, this guy was supposed to be a killer... right?

"Well since you guys have seen me I guess I have no choice but to take you out, right?" He smirked before going through hand signs at an average pace.

"**Raiton: Denk****ō**** Noroshi! (Lightning Release: Lightning Signal Fire)"** he called out, shooting a stream of electricity towards the Genin. Naruto acted quickly, going through his own seals before calling out.

"**D****ō****ton: Dory****ū****heki!"** This caused a large, thick wall to appear in front of them with the Uzumaki spiral emblazoned in multiple places along it's face. (Like how Kakashi's has dog heads in canon)

The **Raiton** jutsu collided with a large explosion, crumbling the wall but protecting the three Genin who sprung into action. Naruto pulled out a kunai and summoned two clones who ran at the man in a zig-zagging fashion. Once they reached the man they tried to put him on the defensive which worked for a little while, taking swings at different places forcing him to dodge or jump away.

"**Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu! (Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu!)"** Came the voice of Sasuke from the man's right. He smirked and kicked one clone into it while stabbing the other and back flipping away.

"Hey thanks kid! I was getting annoyed with those clones!" He said smugly, causing Sasuke to fume. Then a senbon came from behind him hitting him in the neck before he poofed away, revealing a log.

Sakura cursed before moving positions, hoping he hadn't found her yet. He had.

He came from behind her and kicked her out of the trees to the ground below before jumping to finish her off. Sadly multiple Spikes rose from the ground to impale him so he had to adjust to avoid them.

"Hey you brats are pretty good!" He said happily, enjoying the thrill of the fight. The three Genin regrouped in front of him and he smirked before going through more seals, faster than before.

"**Raiton: Jibashi! (Lightning Style: Electromagnetic Murder)"** he called out, sending a stream of electricity towards the Genin, Sasuke and Naruto went through their own seals.

"**Raiton: Kangekiha!"** Sasuke called out, cancelling out the man's jutsu with his own. It tired him out though, hopefully Naruto would finish it.

"**Dōton: Doryūsō!"** Naruto called, causing several spikes to attempt to skewer the missing-nin. He managed to get a hit in the man's leg and lower right torso. The man shouted in pain.

"Damn! Nice shot blondie! Let's kick this up a notch!" He said with a smile, this was fun! He dodged another round of senbon before calling out again.

"**Raiton: Sandāboruto! (Lightning Release: Thunderbolt)"** He concentrated a large amount of electricity in both hands and discharged it all at once. Naruto and Sakura got away but Sasuke was still slightly exhausted and couldn't escape.

"ARGHH!" He screamed through gritted teeth. Fujimoto just smiled and charged with his sword to kill the boy. However he wasn't expecting what actually happened.

**'Drip. Drip. Drip.'**

He'd stabbed though the girl instead. Clean through the stomach. Sasuke stared at her wide eyed. "Why...?" He asked before she smiled and said.

"Why not?" She said, before her eyes closed. Sasuke just stared while the man laughed. "Ha! Real Hero that one. How about you duck-butt? Want to keep this up." He said with a grin.

At least he grinned until he heard a certain someone call out an unfamiliar technique.

**"Shōton: Hatsugano Supaiku! (Crystal Release: Sprouting Spike)"** He turned to the voice and saw a large spike of what appeared to be crystal heading towards him. He dodged it, or so he thought.

Out of nowhere, a second spike grew out of the side of the first, going straight through his heart resulting in instant death.

Sasuke just looked at the blond bewildered. "Naruto? How did you do that?" He asked with wide eyes.

Naruto however wasn't listening. He was looking at Sakura's still form. Was the girl dead? That was the sight Kakashi arrived to see.

"Oh no..." He said.

**-End-**

**Well that's that. There we go. It's Shōton. I bet your wondering how Wind and Earth makes Crystal right? Well in my story Shōton is an advanced chakra nature Kekkei Genkai, like blaze release. Don't like it? I do, unfortunately. **

**Anyway review, favourite, follow etc.**

**LiamMorg out.**

**Ja Ne!**

**-Original Technique(s)-**

**Shōton: Hatsugano Supaiku (Crystal Release: Sprouting Spike)**: The user throws a large crystal spike at the target. This spike remains tethered to the user's chakra and can be made to sprout several extra spikes out of its base shape. This can be used to either kill the target if he is impaled, or to catch the enemy off guard by using it later in the fight by having it grow out of its landing zone towards an unsuspecting foe. (A-Rank. Offensive) See also: ****Mokuton: Sashiki no Jutsu (Wood Release: Cutting Technique)**_  
><em>**


	4. Feelings and Realizations

**I don't own Naruto... well, not in this life. There is however, the possibility of an infinite number of realities, maybe in one of them, I DO own Naruto... That was too deep wasn't it? Oh well, continuing on!**

**Chapter 4: Feelings and Realizations**

**-Start-**

"Oh no..."

Those were the only words Kakashi could find upon finding his team in the state they were in. Sasuke looked exhausted, Naruto was in shock and Sakura had a large wound in the centre of her stomach. They weren't in good shape at all.

He quickly ran up to Sakura feeling that she was the most pressing of issues right now. He didn't miss the large crystal embedded in the dead man's chest, but he'd deal with that later.

He checked the girls pulse and found that she was alive. He sighed in relief but he was still awfully worried, she wouldn't last long in her current condition. They needed to get back to the Leaf village as soon as they could.

Sasuke struggled to his feet and walked over to them – Kakashi and Sakura that is – and sat down beside the girl.

"Is she..." He asked, worry clear in his voice.

"No, she's alive for the moment." He said, while bandaging her wound as well as he could to slow down her bleeding. He could buy a little time at least. The problem was his team, he could run the girl back to Konoha in a few hours at full speed, but leaving his team could easy repeat the issue. Sasuke wasn't fit to move physically and Naruto wasn't mentally.

Speaking of the blond, he still hadn't moved a muscle since he'd thrown his crystal spike at the man. He just saw Sakura and completely shut down. He'd failed to protect his comrade, his friend; a precious person. He'd failed the girl.

"-ruto!" He heard a faint sound. He wasn't listening, too shell shocked. His heart was pounding, it felt like he was going to pass out.

"Naruto!" He heard it again, louder this time.

"NARUTO! LISTEN TO ME!" He shot his head to face Kakashi, who was clearly in a similar state to the rest of them, the man had lost enough people during his career. He didn't want to lose a member of his first Genin team this soon.

"Naruto, we need to get back to Konoha with Sakura as soon as possible or she WILL die! I can't risk leaving you or Sasuke though, so you are going to need to carry him and keep pace with me as best you can. Am I understood?" He said with authority, wanting to ensure this went as smoothly as possible.

"H..Hai Sensei." He said quickly, realizing the gravity of the situation. He would not allow Sakura's death to be a result of his own panic.

He ran over to Sasuke and knelt down, allowing the boy to climb onto his back.

"You'd better keep up Naruto, we can't let her die!" Sasuke said angrily, though he was more angry with himself than anyone else, if he hadn't tired himself out trying to cancel out their enemy's jutsu Sakura wouldn't have needed to jump in the way.

_'It's my fault, and I'll be damned if she dies because of me!'_ he thought. Naruto had stood up after the boy mounted him. (Not like that, weirdos. There is enough Naru/Sasu on this damn site.)

"All right, we fit to move?" Kakashi asked, earning a nod from Naruto. "Then let's go!" He said loudly, picking up the injured girl and carrying her bridal style.

They quickly jumped into the tree line, making haste towards the Leaf village. The sun was beginning to dim, so Kakashi took out his **Sharingan **so that he could move at full efficiency.

Sasuke did the same, directing Naruto to ensure he didn't trip or miss an obstacle in his way. The boys were all rather silent and Kakashi could swear the girl of the group was beginning to grow more still as time went on. He cursed to himself.

_'Not again! First Obito, then Rin, then Minato-sensei, I wont lose another one!'_ He thought determined. He turned to Naruto before speaking.

"Naruto, can you go any faster than this?" He asked. Naruto thought about it before answering.

"How far out are we?" He asked seriously. Kakashi thought about it for a moment before replying.

"About two hours at this speed, why?" He asked.

"I can manage a higher speed for that long I think." He said.

"Excellent, let's move!" The Jounin sped forward, Naruto straining to match his pace.

_'It will be worth it in the end, she will live. She will!'_ Naruto thought to himself.

They continued like this for about half an hour before the Leaf Village became visible. Naruto let out a smile. He looked at the girl, she was still alive, they would make it at this rate!

_'Just a little more and we'll be there, it'll be fine!'_ He thought happily.

The next few minutes were a blur. Team 7 shot through the gates, not bothering to deal with Kotetsu and Izumo. They didn't have time if Sakura was to be saved.

"...What the hell was that?" Kotetsu said. Izumo just shook his head and sighed.

"Not our problem." He said. Kotetsu just growled and went back to his business. Which was sitting there. Doing nothing...

They ran into the hospital and went up to the desk before the woman there saw Sakura and her eyes widened at the state of her. She was covered in blood and had began to go pale. She was barely breathing and her pulse was fading quickly.

"We need emergency attention now! Quickly or she will die!" Kakashi said with a non-arguable tone. The woman quickly ran out of the room before returning with 5 doctors and a stretcher. They laid the girl onto the stretcher before leading her to an operating room, Team 7 in tow.

Sasuke was now walking on his own, feeling rested enough to at least do that. They were stopped at the door of the operating room by one of the nurses.

"I'm terribly sorry but we cannot disturb the medical ninja right now, the girls injuries were severe and this time is crucial." She said in a commanding tone. Kakashi looked down and sighed.

"I understand, thank you for responding so quickly. We'll wait here if that's all right?" He said. The woman looked at him and shrugged.

"I don't see why not, but try not to cause too many issues." She spoke, before walking away. Kakashi turned to see his students just sitting in silence. He decided to clear the air.

"So, what happened out there. I saw that man's body near Sakura and I assume he was a missing nin?" He spoke softly, they were blaming themselves as it was. The man knew how it looked, so shouting at them would solve nothing.

"We arrived at the camp like instructed and all the bandits were dead. After a few moments of looking around, Fujimoto Kazuma appeared from one of the tents. He said he was hired to kill all the bandits and declared he'd have to kill us to keep his location a secret." Said Sasuke.

Kakashi narrowed his eyes at this. If a missing nin was really there that would make this mission another B-rank, maybe an A-rank if he showed sufficient skill. Then he realized they'd left the body there, so the bounty was forfeit if they had no evidence of the kill.

'Why does my team keep getting all these complicated missions?' Kakashi thought angrily, he couldn't really blame his Genin. That man was a C-rank missing nin at the time he left his village, he could have easily up-scaled to a B-rank or maybe even an A-ranked missing nin in two years.

He sighed. "And then what happened?" He said. Naruto decided to carry on at this point.

"We engaged him and were doing well to begin with. I blocked his jutsu with my own, then I created two clones to keep him busy, he got rid of them by using Sasuke's fireball to his advantage. Then he replaced himself with a log when Sakura threw senbon at him. He kicked her out of her hiding spot and tried to fry us with another jutsu. Sasuke cancelled it out with his own while I tried to skewer him with my Earth spears. He managed to get away with minor injuries..." Naruto said before Sasuke intervened.

"Yeah, then he tried yet another jutsu and I was too tired to avoid it. I got hit and stunned so he came in for a finishing blow with his sword, and Sakura jumped in the way. Then Naruto threw some kind of spear at the guy. It was weird though, made out of crystal and another spike grew out of the side of it when it missed and impaled the guy." Sasuke said, finishing the tale.

Kakashi raised his eyebrow at this, that didn't seem like any elemental jutsu he'd ever heard of. "Naruto, what did you do exactly?" He asked, with genuine interest.

"I have no idea to be honest Sensei. I was so angry at the guy I just did the first thing that came to mind, which was that." He said honestly.

"Then it seems you have awakened some sort of Kekkei Genkai. Tell me, did you say anything when you used the jutsu." He asked.

"I think he said... **Sh****ō****ton**." Sasuke said.

"Wait a minute, I have a Kekkei Genkai?" He said, not believing it.

"That is how it seems Naruto, why?" Kakashi said, trying to look neutral. Naruto was smarter now, smart enough to know Kekkei Genkai are usually passed down from parents. It would be hard to believe that a village wouldn't be aware of a bloodline user dying, no matter what the occasion. The fact that Naruto had one would make him believe his parents did, he knew his mother but now he'd have ammunition to question about his father.

"Don't try to act dumb Sensei, Kekkei Genkai are almost always genetic. My mother was an Uzumaki so it wasn't her so it was either my father or I managed to get it randomly." He said seriously. Kakashi just sighed at this and decided to tell the truth.

"Your father had no such bloodline, I have never seen it before." He said, Naruto just scowled. 'Another good chance down the drain.'

Kakashi sighed. He'd figure out about the bloodline later. Now, they had to wait to see what became of Sakura. Naruto had fallen asleep at some point during the wait.

That's what it would look like to outsiders anyway, a certain chakra construct had decided to use his current mental instability to 'tug' him into his mindscape.

**-Naruto's Mindscape.**

Naruto opened his eyes quickly with alarm. He felt strange, like he'd moved a mile in a second. He looked around and realized he probably wasn't far off.

He was laying down in knee deep water, in a dark system of corridors, with pipes zipping throughout the place and dripping every so often.

There seemed to be a constant black fog in the place, something that irked Naruto more than the fact he was there in the first place. He decided to test his luck by calling out.

"Hello? Anyone here?" He shouted down one of the corridors. He received a reply all right. It wasn't human, but it was a reply.

He was rewarded in the form of a bellowing roar. Naruto covered his ears and shut his right eye due to the sheer presence and the volume the roar imposed. He was seriously debating not moving from his spot, but he knew that wouldn't help him at all. He sighed and walked down the passage the sound came from... for a long time...

A REALLY long time. Naruto was beginning to wonder if this was some silly genjutsu prank that had been used on him. He rolled his eyes at the prospect since he wouldn't escape a genjutsu with his chakra capacity and control anyway.

He almost cheered when he arrived in what appeared to be a massive chamber with a gate in the end. He obviously didn't cheer due to the fear the massive gate was bringing up. He had begun to guess where he was. If he was correct, this would be an awkward conversation.

A loud roar came from straight ahead this time, knocking him over into the shallow waters. Naruto was trying not to let his fear show, but who could blame him. Especially with what was creating the noise.

"**Well look who decided to finally pay a visit to little old me, how nice of you mortal." **The creature said sarcastically. Naruto gulped at this, he was certain now. The creature roaring and speaking to him was the horror story mothers tell their children about.

The Kyūbi no Kitsune.

"So, you are my little guest are you?" Naruto said, putting on a mask of confidence to try and make the fox at least respect his guts, if anything. Better to be respected than torn asunder.

"**Oh, how fun. I get the smart-ass for a host. If you want to be funny, go find the Nibi. I hear she loves to play around with her hosts." **The fox growled out. Naruto simply stood there with a raised eyebrow, surprised the beast hadn't threatened to feast on his entrails yet.

"You seem... different to how you are spoken of in the village." Naruto said with furrowed brows. He didn't believe that the village wrecking ball of fur sealed into him could be sarcastic. He came to realize that the fox was just a natural disaster waiting to happen, but maybe that was an exaggeration.

"**Of course I am. Mortals cannot begin to comprehend us. Your pathetic lives end before I can even blink. Disgusting, how you get any enjoyment in such short a time is beyond me." **The beast spoke. Naruto let out a grin at this, knowing he could piss off the fox with his next statement.

"Well I'm glad to see immortality doesn't make you any more intelligent." He said. The Fox returned this remark by trying to slash him in two through the bars. Naruto simply jumped back with an amused expression.

"Tsk tsk, didn't anyone ever teach you to deal with your temper?" He said. The fox just growled and lay back down. Naruto's smile faded with this, his fun had ended. He was curious about a few things though and decided to question the fox about them.

"You were responsible for me coming in here right?" He said, getting a slight nod in return. "Did you want to speak to me about something?" He asked, his curiosity piqued. If a giant fox wanted to talk to you it was obviously relatively important.

"**Getting straight to the point, I am bored." **The fox said. Naruto stifled a laugh at the somewhat childish declaration from the all powerful beast. **"As such I have a request to make of you." **He said, earning a groan from Naruto.

"NO I am NOT letting you out." He said. The fox just growled before continuing.

"**I wasn't going to ask, Mortal. I simply wish to have access to your senses. Seeing your pathetic life will amuse me. In return I won't try to kill everyone around you when you use my power. I will also allow you access to your initial transformation when you require it. Any higher and you will still go into a rampage, most likely." **The beast said casually. Naruto raised an eyebrow at this. It really wasn't a terrible deal, it isn't like the Kyūbi could do anything with access to his senses.

"All right, I'll accept your deal. It sounds fair enough." Naruto said with a slight smile. Maybe the fox wouldn't be a massive pain in the ass, maybe they could co-operate. The fox just snorted and continued.

"**Well since that annoying girl decided to convince you to be less of an idiot I won't exactly get away with an unfavorable deal now will I?"** He said somewhat rhetorically. Naruto just smiled again, Haku was great. 'As a friend. Yeah.'

"I suppose you wouldn't, no." He said before he remembered something. "You mentioned something called Nibi, there are others like you?" He asked skeptically. The fox rolled its eyes at the length of this conversation.

"**Why do you think I am the Kyūbi? There are eight others, each with one tails more than the last. I am the strongest where as the Ichibi is the weakest. The more tails the stronger we are." **The beast said, slight arrogance in its tone. Naruto thought about this and asked one final question.

"So there are nine of you? Is there any way to identify if one is sealed in someone nearby?" The boy asked, genuinely curious. It would be great meeting a fellow container, since they shared a burden.

"**I can tell when one of my brethren is nearby, and since I have access to your senses, I can talk to you without you entering this space. Now leave, I tire of your continued presence." **The fox said before placing its head upon its paw and closing its eyes.

"Fine." The boy remarked...until he remembered something.

"How do I get out of here exactly?" He said. The fox groaned and placed its paws on its head.

"**It's your mind genius, just think it!"** The fox bellowed. Naruto sweat-dropped at that, he should have figured that out himself really. The boy faded from the mindscape, not seeing the smirk on the fox's face.

"**Well he is certainly an interesting host. We shall see what you can do, Naruto Uzumaki. You better hope you do not disappoint me... Lest you find the same fate as your pathetic mother." **The beast said eerily.

**-Back in the Real World, Hospital-**

Naruto awoke to see a hand coming at him. He had no time to react until it hit him atop his head and he grabbed it and moaned in pain. He looked up to see Haku with an eyebrow raised. She sighed before speaking.

"Of course, NOW you wake up." There was irritation in her tone. Naruto was confused by this and decided to question it.

"Whaddya mean?" He said, looking a little silly. Haku sighed and replied (That rhymed.)

"I mean I've been trying to wake you up for like, 20 minutes!" She shouted. Naruto cringed at her tone before realizing the fox must have been ensuring he didn't wake up until they were done. Or maybe he couldn't feel what was happening in the real world while in his mindscape. He'd have to be careful going into it again in future.

"Sorry about that I was having an... internal... debate." He said, not entirely dishonest so that it wouldn't seem obvious he was lying. He never was the best liar.

"Sure you were. Anyway you should know that Sakura is alive but in a coma and Kakashi-sensei and Sasuke have gone home. You should probably rest as well, it must have difficult, having your first kill and seeing a team mate get so injured." She said sadly. Naruto was a little surprised by this, he was so caught up he'd forgotten he'd even killed the guy.

"I... kind of forgot... about the kill." He said, somewhat shaken as the truth sunk in. His breathing began to increase and his eyes darted around the corridor he was sat in as he realized what he'd done. He felt like he was going to go insane, until it all washed away into a peaceful calm.

He discovered the source of the calm feeling was a certain black haired girl who was holding him gently, rubbing his back for comfort. He sighed happily, feeling like nothing could harm him at the moment. The girl always had such an effect on him that he simply couldn't explain. He made a decision to himself.

He'd tell her his secret. If she trusted him as much as he did her then he was sure she'd accept him. He also didn't want to chance them getting any closer only to have it ruined by his secret. The sooner he told her the more she'd trust him.

"Haku-chan." He said, getting her attention. She removed herself from him and looked at him. He couldn't help but marvel at her beauty. Her shinning brown eyes looking right at him and her flawless pale-white skin, from spending so much time in a foggy environment. He smiled at this before returning to his train of thought.

"I'm ready to tell you. About my... secret." He said with only a little doubt, knowing it had to be now. She smiled at this, and took it as a sign that he trusted her.

"That's great Naruto-kun. I'm glad you want to tell me." She said with a radiant smile. He heard a snort - inside his head... weird.

**_'How this kid doesn't realize what's happening here is beyond me...'_**_ A certain fox thought to itself._

Naruto smiled in return before continuing.

"This would be best in privacy. Let's go to my house, I'll tell you everything there." He said. _'I hope you'll see the real me, instead of the beast Haku-chan... I can't lose you.'_ he thought desperately.

The duo walked through the village, Naruto drawing the usual stares and comments, but he wasn't really paying attention right now. He had a lot on his mind! His team mate nearly died, he met his burden – who was surprisingly good company – and he was about to tell the girl at his side about said burden.

_'Maybe she won't care as much if I tell her how... not murderous he seems... it is... I have no idea what to refer to that damn fox as.'_ He mused. He smiled at her, thinking he was lucky to have met her.

**-Naruto's Apartment-**

They arrived at Naruto's apartment, most of the graffiti gone since Naruto decided it was an eyesore and took a day to thoroughly clean it off. He walked inside and ushered Haku to a seat. She smiled and sat down.

"This place is better than you made it out to be." She said off-handedly. Naruto just rolled his eyes. He'd been spending a decent amount of money fixing it up, that was why.

"I wonder why..." he said. "All right then, there is no point dragging this out I suppose. Haku-chan, do you know what a Bijuu is?" He asked, being a little vague for the sake of getting some information first.

"Yes, the Mizukage of the Village Hidden in the Mist was a Jinchuuriki. He held the Sanbi, I believe." She said, not sure how that related to anything. Naruto just nodded, that made things easier.

"Do you know the tale of the Yondaime Hokage and the Kyūbi? The fight they had 12 years ago?" He asked her. Haku nodded and responded.

"Yes, it was claimed the Yondaime gave his life to defeat the beast. However I find it strange it hasn't reformed yet. I was told they only took a few years to do so." She said, confused by the topic they were discussing.

"Well that's because it can't reform. It isn't dead." He said, rising from the table and raising his shirt slightly, channelling chakra into the seal. "I am Naruto Uzumaki, Jinchuuriki of the Kyūbi no Kitsune." He said seriously. Haku just gaped at this, before thinking back to the bridge battle.

_'Now it all makes sense! That was the power he used on the bridge, that was the power of the his Bijuu!'_ She thought before smiling. Naruto was taken aback by her smile before she walked over and grabbed his hand.

"Is that all?" She asked nonchalantly. Naruto face-faulted at this. It was at least a little surprising, wasn't it? He certainly didn't take it this well, he was barely even able to speak when he was told. Although that was the point at the time, to confuse him.

"Wh...what?! Is that all? What do you mean? You should be scared, upset, concerned at least! This is far too positive a reaction!" He shouted at her. She simply giggled at his over the top reaction to her answer. Obviously she then blushed when he smirked at her giggle. This was a normal thing for them now.

"Er... well I don't know about you but I am aware of how sealing works, and that seal is very good. It's not like the Kyūbi has any control over you... well... unless you get really mad like on the bridge. You can work on that though, so it isn't a problem." She said honestly. Naruto just smiled and thanked the girl.

_**'Seriously, what'll it take for him to work it out?' **The fox groaned._

He sighed. "The only reason I brought this up now was because I actually spoke to the fox earlier today, that's why I wouldn't wake up." He said. Haku widened her eyes at this, he could talk to it?

"What did it want?" She asked. Naruto just smiled and replied.

"Access to my senses. Sight, sound, You know the deal." He replied casually. Haku just scoffed at this. Naruto would let a titanic mass of evil chakra have access to his senses.

"You're still an idiot, you know that right?" She asked with a smirk. Naruto just scowled at this, this was a sure-shot way to irritate him and Haku was well aware.

"Haha! You're so funny. Stupid ice users and their lame jabs at my intelligence." He said, muttering to himself at the end. Haku laughed softly before they both settled down. Naruto then remembered something he'd forgotten the past few weeks.

"Oh crap! My Kaa-san's stuff was delivered ages ago!" He said, running to the door and ignoring Haku's questions of what exactly he was doing. Then he returned with a decently large box before putting it on the table. In the box were a few things. Access to the Uzumaki accounts, something that was his by birthright.

Then there were scrolls giving a far more detailed account of the Uzumaki clan's history and skills, along with a few scrolls regarding sealing and a few others that had less useful but still important texts regarding things like the Uzumaki family tree and information about Uzushiogakure.

Haku was paying close attention to the blond as he went through his Mother's possessions. She knew he was probably going to cry at some point, so she was there if he needed her. This didn't concern her unless he wanted it too.

Obviously that time came when he read a note from her. He began to read the note, his emotions reflecting his years of repressed pain of having no family.

_Dear Naruto,_

_This is your Kaa-san, sochi. If you are reading this then unfortunately I have died before I can meet you as a grown boy. I know you are probably either upset or angry that I wasn't there for you, but I hope that your Tou-san is there at least. If he isn't, I've probably already given him a piece of my mind in the next life! _

_I just wanted to make sure you know how much I love you, I was never happier than when I learned I was pregnant with you. Your father was ecstatic at the prospect of being a father. In case he's dead and you don't know who he is, I'm sorry but I can't tell you what his name is, but he is a great man, and I know he would've loved you almost as much as I do._

_I'm so sorry for leaving you, and I hope you can forgive me, I will love you always,_

_Kushina Uzumaki, Your Kaa-san._

_P.s. If you got my verbal tick, I am sooo sorry!_

Naruto was just barely holding together until he read the part about the verbal tick, where he just sank to his knees and began to let out his emotions that had been repressed for years. Haku just stood behind his, soothingly rubbing his back, letting him know she was there for him.

After a few minutes, he finally calmed down. He stood up and wiped away his tears, giving a half-smile to Haku as thanks. He continued to search through the box and found a picture of his mother while pregnant and a large empty scroll, no doubt for sealing to be learned and used.

He stared at the picture for a while. Haku came behind him and looked at it before speaking

"She was a beautiful woman Naruto-kun. I'm sure she would have been very proud of you." She said comfortingly. Naruto just let a single tear flow down his cheek and smiled. Haku was so good to him.

"Thank you Haku-chan. I really appreciate you being here for this, there's no-one I'd rather have here with me." He said with a genuine smile. Haku just blushed but didn't turn away embarrassed like usual. She just returned the smile and spoke.

"There is nowhere I'd rather be, Naruto-kun." She said honestly. The boy just hugged her and she returned it just as easily. They stood there for a few minutes, uncaring of the passage of time or the lateness of the hour.

_**'Oh my god this is just painful to watch, TAKE HER!' **The fox thought._

They finally separated after a little while longer. Haku just bounced on her toes nervously before speaking.

"Well... I should uh... be going now." She said with a blush, hoping he wouldn't notice her current state. Naruto just let out a light-hearted chuckle, though it felt a little forced.

"Yeah, that's probably for the best." He said. She just half-smiled, said goodbye and left. Naruto stood there for a little while before a frown graced his features. _'Why do I suddenly feel so empty?_' He thought to himself. Whenever Haku was involved nothing made sense!

He let out a groan before getting ready to go to sleep. _'Tomorrow is going to suck, I can already tell.'_

_**'Kami dammit mortal! Why must I be sealed into such an oblivious bastard?!' **The fox finished, before giving up and going back to sleep._

**-The Hokage's Office-**

Hiruzen was reading a certain book written by a certain white haired pervert when Kakashi walked in looking a bit disheveled. The Sandaime quickly pocketed his book before entering Hokage-mode. Kakashi did a small bow before beginning to speak.

"Hokage-sama I would like to report a... strange occurrence." The masked man said. The Hokage raised an eyebrow at this and replied.

"If you are here to speak to me regarding Sakura-chan then don't bother, I am well aware of what happened to her." He said. Kakashi shook his head at this, making the Sandaime lean forward. "Then I'm all ears."

"If you don't mind, Hokage-sama, could the ANBU leave for this?" He asked calmly. The Hokage nodded and sent them out. He then sat back and ushered the man to sit. Kakashi bowed in thanks before taking a seat.

"It's... about Naruto." He said nervously.

"What'd he do this time?" He said with smirk, remembering all the trouble he used to get into before he became serious about his career choice. The wizened Hokage frowned at this, his more serious nature somewhat concerned the man. The very business-like and serious shinobi tended to become introverted, not bothering to live their lives.

"That's just it Hokage-sama, he did something rather remarkable. He has unlocked a Kekkei Genkai I have never seen nor heard of, and Minato-sensei definitely did not have one." He said seriously. The old man's eyes bulged out of their sockets at this, the young knuckle-head had a bloodline?!

"What?! What is it? What can it do?" Hiruzen asked the Jōnin. He simply sighed and decided to start at the beginning.

"Well from what we have learned it's called **Sh****ōton **('Crystal Release'). I'm sure you can guess what it does." The man said with a slight sigh.

"I've heard of that, during the last war a few people were reported to be able to manipulate strange pink and blue crystals and make them do a very variable number of things. From what I can gather, that Kekkei Genkai can do just about anything a physical substance can do. It can be used like Sand if the user so desires." The old man said, showing why he was revered as 'The Professor'. It was like he was reading from a textbook.

Kakashi raised an eyebrow at this. "It's that powerful? How on earth did Naruto get it?" He asked. The Sandaime sighed and continued.

"Well its power is questionable but its variability is its greatest asset. Regarding Naruto, it isn't unheard of for people to carry dormant Kekkei Genkai's or for people to suddenly develop one. They had to start somewhere so obviously they can spring up randomly. The Shodaime was a good example, he was the first and only **Mokuton** user, so his body just developed it randomly, whether through the mixture of his parents genes or not." The man said, showing his expert mind.

"I see" Kakashi said, contemplating what he Hokage had just said. Honestly, it made perfect sense. All bloodlines started somewhere, some are obviously just less blood related than others. The **Jinton **was a good example, since both the Nidaime and Sandaime Tsuchikage had it, but they weren't related in any way.

"Now if that's all Kakashi I will be speaking with all the Jōnin-sensei within the week, so be prepared." He said with finality.

_'So it's that time already.'_ He mused. "Hokage-sama I would like to make a request." He said, making the Sandaime focus his attention back on the man.

"Oh? What would that be Kakashi?" The aged Hokage questioned. Kakashi simply shrugged and continued.

"Well one of my team happens to be in a coma and if you are speaking to the Jōnin-sensei about what I think you are we will need another member, so I have an idea. I know a certain Genin who currently is without a team, she would be a great benefit..." He said vaguely

"I see, well I believe that is an excellent idea Kakashi, it will be done." The man said with a smirk. They both had one thought as Kakashi left the room.

_'Naruto is going to be pleased about this.'_

**-Naruto's Apartment-**

Naruto, despite being in a good mood when Haku left still could not drift off to sleep. He was worried, plain and simple. His failure to protect his precious people had put Sakura in a coma. He was worried he would get the others hurt as well.

"No use moping about it! I'll just need to double my training and ensure that I'm more than ready for what comes at us next!" He exclaimed to himself, to boost his own morale. It mostly worked, but a flicker of doubt remained in his heart.

_'What if I can't protect HER?'_

He shrugged off that thought, he couldn't think of such things. The more self doubt he felt the harder it would be to motivate himself to become stronger to avoid further heart break. However one cannot use reason to combat issues with the heart. The heart is not a logical thing, it runs entirely on emotion.

He groaned and got dressed before leaving.

**-Just Outside the Village-**

Unable to sleep Naruto decided to go to a nearby river just outside the village to practice the Water Walking technique Kakashi had informed him of. That conversation was a rather awkward one to say the least.

_**!Flashback no Jutsu!**_

_Naruto was busy training with the two jutsu Kakashi gave him to learn, he was so concentrated on them he didn't even notice his sensei walking out into his little clearing and towards him._

"_Yo" He said_

"_AHH!" Naruto said, jumping away and falling on his butt. Kakashi sweat-dropped at this, he really needed to work on his observation skills._

"_No need to jump out of your skin Naruto, it's only me." He said, making Naruto scowl. "Now then, I am here to give you a bonus exercise to do in your own time, if you so desire." He said seriously. Naruto rose an eyebrow, urging the man to continue._

"_Put simply, your chakra control is awful, we both know WHY but that doesn't change the fact now does it?" He said making Naruto pout. He let out a small laugh and continued._

"_There is a chakra control exercise that doubles as a life skill, it is known as the Water Walking exercise. You saw me and Zabuza using this on our mission to Wave remember?" He said, earning an excited nod._

"_Well, it's a similar concept to the tree climbing exercise, but since the water is never still, you need to learn to adapt your chakra to the flow of the water. It will be rather difficult for you to master, but it will benefit you greatly." He said cheerily, making Naruto smile._

"_That sounds like a great plan sensei, I'll do that." He said, making the man nod before using a Shunshin to leave._

"_Show off." _

_**!Flashback no Jutsu! !Kai!**_

Naruto took a step towards the water, focusing his chakra like he was told. He took a step onto the waters surface, wobbled and fell in. He cursed to himself loudly, since nobody was around.

_'This is going to take a while.'_ He thought with a pout that would have been cute, had anyone been there to see it.

This continued for a few hours, and Naruto gradually got more acquainted with the exercise until he could stand on the surface, albeit shakily.

"Right, step one is complete. Let's move to step two!" He said to himself before grinning and making a familiar hand sign.

"**Kage Bushin no Jutsu!"** He called out, making ten clones that all surrounded him.

"All right, this is an all out Taijutsu brawl, we have to fight on the water until it is second nature. The way I figure it, the more we do it, the quicker it'll go. So, who wants the first dance?!" He shouted out, not realizing he was mimicking Konoha's greatest traitor.

_**'Of all the people he could imitate! He is doing this on purpose! Dammit Madara when I get out of this kid I will burn your grave and eat your smoldering corpse!' **The fox thought._

**-End-**

**Oh, and yes. My ways of writing 'I don't own Naruto' will keep getting more ridiculous. Deal with it.**

**Anyway review, favorite, follow etc.**

**LiamMorg. Out.**

**Ja Ne!**


	5. The Next Step

**I don't own Naruto... however, since Kishi is such a god-damn troll then I see no alternative other than to petition to hand over all royalties to me, until his troll level reduces... that'll work. Next point...**

**Chapter 5: The Next Step.**

**-Start-**

"...So, who wants the first dance?!" Said a certain whiskered blond, currently training his water walking skills.

The clones that were summoned to help him train shifted uneasily at this. Nobody was really able to fully ascertain why Naruto's clones would sometimes have different personalities or act different than the original, but the fact of the matter was that, they just did.

On that note, none of the clones were sure why the original said what he did. As they were him they knew that as of yet, he hadn't enjoyed a single fight. He would always lose spars during the academy, he got his ass kicked by Kakashi during the bell test, he froze against the demon brothers, both Haku and Zabuza gave him a run for his money and Fujimoto nearly killed his comrade.

No, the clones were rather worried by the original Naruto's actions, wondering if the near death of his comrade had unlocked a more malicious side of him, a side that was more akin to his beast than himself.

Despite being surrounded, Naruto had a massive grin plastered across his face and even though none of his clones were doing anything he was still getting rather excited. He was looking forward to cutting loose a little, knowing his clones would dispel should he believe things were going too far.

"What, did you guys take after the more gentle part of me? Come on!" The original shouted, trying to bait his clones into attacking. The clones all furrowed their brows at this, no matter how much Naruto improved his mind his impulsiveness and pride as a ninja could not simply be trained out. He was working on them on course but they would not be easy to cover up completely.

The two clones closest to him both ran towards him in erratic patterns, not wanting him to formulate a proper attack plan. The original Naruto's smirk deepened at this, glad the clones were using the slightly limited tactical skills he had learned seriously.

When the clones arrived one was at his right and the other was at his left. He quickly scanned his eyes all around and used his senses to see that the rest of the clones were not using the opportunity to jump in – not yet at least.

The clone on his right threw a precise and quick punch at his side. Naruto simply leaned back and slapped the arm away before grabbing an arm coming from the left. He threw the clone he had grabbed over his head towards the other clone. The clone that started on his right simply jumped out of the way, catching the wrist of the flying clone on the way back to stop its momentum.

The clone that started on the left regained its senses and nodded towards the other before they both shot towards the original. The one on the right threw an elbow shot to the stomach of the original, to which he replied with a cross-guard with his arms, before kicking out with his back leg and tripping the other clone.

The clone hit the surface of the water and fell through, before dispersing. The right clone simply scowled at this before jumping back and allowing another clone to join in.

The original was having fun. A lot of fun, he couldn't explain it but the momentary look of shock on the clones face before it dispersed made him very happy. It was almost as if he enjoyed the pain he caused it.

Now, with another clone to back it up, the survivor of the original charge went back in to fight. They once again fought in tandem to gain the advantage. The clone on the right jumping up using chakra to get behind while the other used a feint using a weak punch before kicking out with the back leg. The original grabbed the punch unaware of the feint and was kicked back, he was about to retaliate when he stumbled and sank in the water a little.

"Damn, I guess this exercise is necessary." The original said, aware that a real battle would make him receive a few blows, requiring his use of water walking to be perfect unless he wanted to give his opponent an advantage.

One of the furthest back clones went to take advantage of the originals plight when said person kicked off the water with the still stable leg and did a twirl which enabled him to give a harsh kick to the clone's head, dispelling him also.

"Two down, eight to go!" The original said with a bloodthirsty grin. The two that ran in previously just rolled their eyes and advanced again. The original had a thought at this.

_'May as well give it a shot, can't learn unless you try I guess...'_ He thought before gathering his chakra in his hands, the left cupping the right, level with the ground. He smiled when the weight in his hands began to rise. 'Success.' He thought happily.

**Shōton: Suihouno Sampu zu! (Crystal Release: Crystal Scatter!)** he said, throwing multiple small crystals of no obvious shape towards the advancing clones, peppering them until they finally dispersed. He smiled with glee, the clones raising their eyebrows at the on-the-fly use of a new technique.

"That's four! Who wants the next dance?!" The original said. The clones sighed at this, the original was getting far too into this, they should end it before he tries anything too destructive. Then again, that'd require them to either dispel – and anger the original, who could simply make more clones – or do something destructive themselves. Neither option was preferable.

"Yeah yeah. Keep talking smart ass!" Clone designation 'crash test dummy #4' said. The original just looked at the clone and chuckled, he was glad they were using tactics, feints and the opponents emotion against him. It proved that he was improving. Even if he was not the one using those things, his clones shared his thought process.

"I plan to!" He said tauntingly. The clone fumed at this, unaware his temper tactic backfired. He charged at the original with reckless abandon and simply threw a sloppy punch at the original who simply leaned back and hit the clone in the jaw with the bottom of his hand. The clone dispelled, and Naruto chose to keep its memories as information.

_'Note 1: Work on anger issues. Long term issue'_ He mused absently, using his improved mind to pick out the faults the clones were displaying so that he could iron them out, he then thought back to the feint he was tricked by.

_'Note 2: Analyse enemy attacks more clearly. Can be done through clone sparring.'_

"Come on now, are you guys even trying? Maybe I should just fight myself... wait, I am... Never mind!" He said, trying to taunt more clones into giving into their anger so he could try to deduce what triggered the outbursts. Surprisingly, none of them reacted.

_'Strange, what was different? Better yet, why didn't I react to the taunt they did to me? Bah, this is confusing.'_ He thought, slightly annoyed that he was so impulsive and random.

He looked around, but only saw four clones. He raised an eyebrow in surprise when a fist came out of the water, heading straight for his face. He grabbed the wrist and sighed.

"Too much force; We must be able to correct ourselves should the first blow be ineffective." He said, kicking the clone in the face and dispelling it. He was sure he learned to throw his punches better than this. Then again, the force was used to eject the clone from the water, so it could be forgiven. _'Still useful to note though.'_ he thought.

"That leaves four. Are you too tired to tango?" He said, unaware that he hadn't slipped through the water for a while now. The clones maintained their focus, albeit with a small scowl. The original smiled happily at this. _'Nobody can doubt the effectiveness of clone aided training!'_ He thought.

"Please, you should know we don't get tired." One of the clones said sarcastically; the indomitable stamina of the Uzumaki mixed with being a Jinchūriki making them unstoppable in a battle of attrition.

"I guess I should. Though, that may not apply to you guys. I have not seen any clones in a long battle, maybe the stamina of clones is reduced. You never know..." He said thoughtfully. The clones seemed to ponder this before getting back into the game.

The original, tiring of the stand-off charged in seemingly headstrong. Though if one were to analyse him carefully, they would see he positioned himself in a way that allowed his to quickly correct his steps in a moments notice if the need should arise. One of the clones was not analysing carefully though and quickly ran to his side and jumped at him, leg pulled back.

The original smiled with his eyes opened wider than normal, giving him a rather fearsome expression and correcting his footing, quickly shooting to the side before a kunai shot out of his sleeve, connected to a mechanism that can extend and retract to allow the blade to be used as a surprise weapon.

He quickly grabbed it in both hands and mercilessly stabbed it into the clones back, behind where the left lung would be. The clone let out a cry of pain before dispelling. The original just smirked and backflipped away before the clones could attack.

"Only three more, how will you defeat me hmm?" The original mocked playfully. The three clones unconsciously took a step backwards. The original didn't realize how imposing he looked at the moment.

"No reply? I'll have to force your tongues!" He shouted, giving in to his more battle hungry desires. Don't get me wrong, he still wasn't some sort of deranged psycho, but he had adopted a somewhat unhealthy thirst for a good fight. That didn't actually carry over to the killing aspect though, he still wasn't really happy about it but would steel himself for it, like Haku had claimed she would do.

He charged at the right hand clone, kicking off the water and spinning his other leg in an arc as if trying to kick the clones head right off. The clone simply ducked, pushed the leg upwards and used his other hand to grab the jacket of the original before throwing slamming him into the water.

He didn't get quite that far however, as the original wrapped his legs around the clone before he could hit the water and spun himself, which forced the clone off his feet and his own body tumbling to the water. The original then untied his legs, placed a hand on the water and kicked down to the clones chest, forcing him into the water hard. The clone obviously dispelled due to this acrobatic and deadly action.

_'I'm definitely getting better, I feel like I could beat Sasuke in Taijutsu right now!'_ He thought with a smile. He was wrong, obviously. Sasuke's **Sharingan**, along with experience with the Uchiha's 'Interceptor Fist' style, made him very difficult to defeat in Taijutsu. It required speed, strength and tactics in equal measure to beat this style.

Speed was required to overpower the time distorting effects of the **Sharingan**. Strength was required to deal the damage itself, or to break through defences the opponent set up, though this could be replaced with precise moves or special styles (The 'Gentle Fist' for example.). Tactics were required to effectively get around the opponents defences while not giving them an opening to launch an assault themselves. All in all, the Uchiha were rather troublesome fighters.

"Last two. How will you do?" He said neutrally, the thrill of the battle waning with his inevitable victory. The two clones simply nodded to each other before they advanced. The original decided to meet them midway for a nice finish.

One clone charged ahead and threw a kick to his side, he blocked and tried to grab the leg. The attempt was halted by the other clone who punched at his side, forcing him to dodge the blow and jump aside. The two clones then charged back to him, uncaring that he was recovering.

Naruto was beginning to understand his clones more and more. It seemed that the less clones there were, the more organised and tactical they became.

_'Of course! The chakra is shared less so the potency and focus of it is improved! It makes perfect sense!'_ He thought, having come across an important detail. It made sense that this was not documented, only he or other Uzumaki could possibly make anywhere near as many clones as he could. Well, them or other Jinchūriki.

As he steadied himself, the clones arrived in front, one punching stomach-level while the other jumped over him and kicked towards Naruto's head. The original simply smiled, he grabbed the arm of the first clone while tilting his head to avoid the kick. Then he threw the first clone upwards, causing it to collide with the airborne clone.

The clone in mid-air was sent flying away while the other dispelled. Naruto's smile returned, knowing with one clone they were essentially the same, as the chakra was focused in a single place.

"Well, you're the last man standing. Firstly, congratulations. Secondly, let's end this dance with a show!" He said making the other clone smile and nod. The other clone pulled the kunai from his wrist mechanism while the original started to manoeuvre around the blows the clone was attempting to land on him.

_'He's aiming for important sections, though none of them are lethal... makes sense I suppose, killing the original would be bad for him.'_ He mused. He saw an opening in the clone's defence and decided to capitalize on it. He made a quick grab for the clone's jacket, and tossed him over his head, so the clone collided head-first with the water.

Naruto, now out of clones simply walked over to the land and collapsed on the ground. He smiled happily, all the information he gained from the spar giving him new ideas for his training and general fighting style in the future.

Not to mention he'd managed to make a **Shōton** jutsu without instinct. Now he'd be able to start training his bloodline, further honing his skills and widening his skill set. He closed his eyes, the mental feedback of the clones mixed with the physical workout catching up with him. He unwittingly fell asleep then and there.

**-The Next Day-**

Naruto awoke with a headache. He was in a small clearing with a large pool nearby. The clearing was rather barren. It had the obvious layer of grass and a few flowers, but that was just about it. It was surrounded by a large amount of trees twisting and turning in different ways in their desperate battle against one and other to get as much sunlight as possible.

The sky was a beautiful shade of blue – similar in shade to Naruto's own cerulean blue eyes – with a few clouds decorating and giving context to its bright and inviting presence. The sun was a little low, signifying that the day was still young. It's bright rays shinning through the canopies and illuminating sections of the clearing. One such ray was dead centre in Naruto's face, making him groan.

_'I don't care how beautiful the sun is, it's bloody annoying.'_ He thought, a little angrily that he'd have to move on this glorious morning. He sighed and closed his eyes, trying with futility to block out the suns oppressive gaze. The light somehow shined through even his closed eyelids, however and he was forced to yield to the gigantic mass of fire and light.

"You win this time, you annoying ball of fire." The boy thought with a slight frown, before a smile broke out across his face as he took in the beauty of the scene he was surrounded by. He had always appreciated nature, must be a side effect of growing up in such a place.

_**"You mortals are so odd, sure you love the giant fireball in the sky, but when I set fire to something, suddenly there's a problem..." **_The Fox in Naruto's mind said through the mental link. Naruto simply shook his head at this.

_"Yeah, that's because nobody lives on the sun, and people don't like having their possessions burn to ash."_ He replied mentally. The fox simply scoffed and returned to its endless nap.

"Man, the Shodaime had the right idea when he built Konoha here. He may have grown the forest, but the area in general is just perfect." He said with a smile, looking up at the sky. He eventually stopped as he realized he could not just stand out here all day.

"Oh well... guess I should go home and change, I'm still a little messed up from yesterday." He said, looking at his outfit, slightly stained and wet... somehow. He shook his head, wondering how it could still be wet from all those hours ago, before he realized how late he was up. He then began his trek home.

**-In Konoha-**

Sufficiently cleaned up and having eaten a nice breakfast, Naruto was now wandering the streets of Konoha wondering what to do. He could train a little, go see what his team was up to, look for some of the other rookie 9, have lunch at Ichiraku Ramen... despite the fact he'd just eaten. He could go see Haku even...

That was the train of thought on his mind as a certain brown eyed, black haired girl turned the corner behind him before spotting the boy. She'd been to his home early in the day only to find he wasn't home, which confused her as it was still rather early in the day. She was an early bird by nature, having wandered the land with a missing nin.

"Naruto-kun?" She said, causing the boy to turn to her. He took in her image in front of him before realizing the person on his thoughts was behind him. He smiled and walked towards her, noticing her slightly questioning gaze.

As he walked towards her Haku came to a stop and let him finish closing the distance while she spoke. "Where were you this morning? I came over to see you and you weren't there, and it was pretty early." She asked, earning a slightly nervous smile from the boy while he ruffled the hair on the back of his head.

"I kinda fell asleep out in the forest after some late night training, I guess I lost track of time." He said, earning a huff from the girl while she shook her head and placed her arms beneath her chest. The boy could be so careless sometimes, it was a wonder he hadn't done something ridiculously stupid and gotten hurt.

"Well that was stupid wasn't it? Now then about the reason I ca... What the hell is that?" She said. The boy raised a brow before turning and seeing quite possibly the most pathetic thing he'd ever seen.

There was a square, cardboard box coming towards him. The 'box' noticed he was looking and came to a rather clumsy halt. The duo just sweat-dropped at this, wondering how anybody could be so monumentally stupid as to believe this would fool a shinobi.

_'I can't believe I didn't sense their approach. I am so going to slap myself when everybody is looking away.'_ He thought, honestly disappointed in himself. He sighed and spoke.

"All right Konohamaru you can come out of the box. The... other two as well." He said, using a technique to simulate sensory. It was nothing in comparison to actual sensors, but it was useful to have. It basically involved focusing on nearby presences with the users own chakra as a medium, sending it out to 'attach' to others and send feedback to the user. While the technique is nameless, it is still a valuable tool.

The box then exploded in a large multi-coloured cloud. The cloud eventually cleared to reveal three individuals: Konohamaru, a boy with spiky brown hair and black eyes who wore a yellow shirt with the Konoha symbol in red on the front, grey shorts and a long blue scarf. He also wore a pair of goggles.

Next was another boy Naruto didn't know, he had short brown hair and black eyes, he wore a simple blue shirt with a zip in its centre, a pair of brown pants, sandals and a matching pair of goggles to Konohamaru.

Lastly, was a female. She had orange hair, tied up with red elastics in two large pigtails with a perpetual blush. She wore a red tank-top over a pink t-shirt, grey pants and traditional sandals.

Naruto was generally unamused by this show and decided to let the boy explain why he was following him, not that he really needed him to. The boy strangely idolized the blond shinobi, but he idolized the idiot, not the newer and more intelligent ninja the blond had become recently. It made him question the sanity of the young boy.

A large coughing fit was occurring between the three youths. One of the males decided to comment on their 'genius' idea. "I think we used too much gunpowder..." This caused Naruto to face fault. They could at least do that right.

They gathered their bearings... eventually and began an introduction that would make even Jiraiya face-fault.

"I'm Moegi, The sassiest kunoichi in pre-school! Check me out!" Said the female; now identified as Moegi.

"I love algebra, Call me Udon!" Said the male; now known as Udon.

"And I'm the number one ninja in the village; Konohamaru!..." Said Konohamaru.

"And when we're all together, we form the Konohamaru Ninja Squad!" They said in tandem.

They all looked at Naruto expectantly, but he was barely able to decide whether to laugh at the pathetic display or to sigh and tell them how foolish they are. So he chose the middle option, to look at them disaprovingly with a twitching eyebrow.

"...Riiiiiiiight." Said Naruto. Haku just giggled at this while the Konohamaru corps just looked at the boy with inspecting gazes. Konohamaru noticed the difference in his attire almost instantly and decided to question it.

"Hey boss, what happened to your cool orange outfit?" He said, making Naruto sigh while Haku started to tremble with a mixture of disappointment in Naruto for ever wearing it and fury at Konohamaru for actually approving of the monstrosity.

"It needed to be... Destroyed. With a lot of fire. Then buried." He said with a slight grimace.

"Whaddya mean boss? That outfit was great!" He said. Haku couldn't take it any longer and decided to get involved.

"What is wrong with you?! That _thing_ was disgusting!" She said with anger written all across her beautiful face. Her expression made even Naruto step back in fear of what she might have done. Konohamaru was _even more oblivious _than even Naruto though, so he was unaware of what was going on.

"What would you know? That was great on the boss! It had character!" The young scarfed boy said, while Naruto just sunk to his knees.

_'Doesn't this outfit have character? And why on earth is he defending that thing? After taking it off for a while I couldn't even stick it being in the same building as me!'_ He thought to himself.

"Naruto-kun should not degrade himself to wearing that filth." She said with determination. Konohamaru was getting a little confused at Naruto being so strongly defended by the girl.

"Hey boss who is this girl?" He said, before looking at Haku who was looking at Naruto, who caught her gaze, making her turn away with a slight blush.

"Oh? This is Haku-chan, a friend of mine." He said with a small smile. Konohamaru had a small light bulb go off in his head before rubbing Naruto's back and speaking.

"Oh~ I get it. Nice catch boss." He said with a blush and a silly grin. Naruto looked at him and raised an eyebrow. Konohamaru took this as a sign to continue.

"You know, she's your..." He said, raising his pinky finger. "...girlfriend right?" He said, making Haku blush a colour that would've made Kushina proud while Naruto started spluttering out excuses, which somehow seemed to be hard to say for whatever reason.

"You... brat!" Haku shouted. "Whether that were true or not you have no right to bring it up, it is our business!" She said, unknowing avoiding outright denying it.

Seeing the look on her face and the fact that Konohamaru was kind of an idiot, Naruto decided to give some friendly advice. "Yo, Konohamaru. You like being a pincushion?" He said, earning a shake of the head. "Then I advise you start running, soon." He said nodding towards Haku.

Konohamaru saw the look on her face and silently prayed to Kami to save him before sprinting down the alley. Naruto looked on with a slightly sadistic laugh as he saw his young friend (read: Stalker) getting chased by Haku, who was using her senbon rather effectively.

He eventually decided to follow so the girl didn't put him in a near death state. He turned the corner to see Konohamaru get hoisted of the ground by a teenager wearing a black, full body cat suit and strange purple war-paint decorating his face. The front of his suit had a circle design with a split down the centre, cutting the colours on both sides. The right side was purple while the left side was yellow, the outline of the whole thing being a white line.

Next to him was a girl with blond hair in four short, spiky ponytails and teal eyes. Her outfit consists of a single light purple, off the shoulders garment that extends halfway down her thighs with a scarlet sash around the waist. She wore fishnet over her shoulders and legs and a black forehead protector around her neck, where it couldn't protect her forehead... genius.

"That hurt you brat." Said catman... I mean the male ninja.

"Cut it out Kankuro, we'll only get in trouble later." Said the blond female. He just scoffed and replied.

"Don't worry Temari, I just wanna play around a little." Said the newly identified ninja named Kankuro.

"I highly advise you release that boy immediately." Came the calm voice of Naruto. Kankuro raised his head to look at the boy, and was made slightly nervous by the way the boy looked so calm, and yet was so imposing. It reminded him of a certain individual he knew and that made it all the worse.

"What are you going to do about it?" He said arrogantly. Naruto simply rolled his eyes at the Suna Nin's idiocy. _'If they knew who they were assaulting...'_ he mused with a smile, making Kankuro all the more nervous.

"Me? Not much really. It wouldn't be wise for me to assault ninja from an allied nation of the Leaf. However you should follow the same principal, this boy is in the academy, not to mention you are on foreign soil. This could end very badly for both you and you're village." He said, trying to bluff them out. Kankuro begrudgingly dropped the boy, knowing everything that was said was true.

"Fine. How about a little 'spar' then? It'll be fun." He said. Naruto just shook his head put his arm on the shoulder of Konohamaru who had moved to his side.

"I'll have to pass on that, but thanks for the offer. I assume you have a valid reason for being in our village? Not to threaten you or anything but I feel the need to check after the... incident you almost caused." He replied. Temari scoffed at this before replying.

"Ever heard of the Chunnin exams? Shouldn't you be aware of events taking place within your own village." She said, earning a smile from Kankuro. Naruto just shook his head while Haku decided to reply.

"Unless we are told by our Jōnin-Sensei or the information is publicly announced, we wont be aware now will we?" She said sarcastically, earning a glare from the Suna shinobi.

"Interesting, I wonder if Kakashi-sensei is entering our team... hmm, nevermind. Sakura is unable to take part, so we can't." Naruto said out loud, earning raised eyebrows from the Suna nin. Kankuro took this as a chance for a jab at the blond who had been talking circles around him.

"Oh? Why'd your teammate get hurt? You screw up or something, you look like the type to do something like that." He said, though he immediately wished he hadn't. An oppressive aura began to surface from the blond, making Kankuro sweat and Temari's eye's to widen.

_'It's just like HIM!'_ She thought, fearfully.

"Don't you dare insinuate that her injury was my fault! We were facing an enemy stronger than us and we did the best we could in the situation! UNDERSTOOD!?" He all but shouted. Haku was worried that he would lose control of his little passenger and decided to calm him down.

"Naruto-kun." She said, getting his attention. "Don't let them get to you, you did do the best you could, do not allow them to get a rise out of you." She said soothingly. Naruto immediately calmed down at this, but not before shooting Kankuro a glare.

"You are lucky Haku-chan is here, or this would've been far messier I assure you." He growled out. Kankuro, having regained his both composure and lack of concern for his health decided to retort to the threat.

"You wanna go punk? I could cream you any day!" He shouted, before a rock impacted with his hand, making him wince and look up at a certain black haired and black eyed Genin in the tree nearby.

"Grr, you Leaf ninja are like rats! Coming out of every hole!" He said, taking the bandaged mass on his back off and holding it straight on the ground with his right hand. Temari widened her eyes slightly at this and decided to question him.

"You're using Karasu for this?!" She asked him, earning a grunt before an eerie voice came from the tree Sasuke was standing on.

"Kankuro, stop this. You are embarrassing our village." He said in a monotone. The two Suna shinobi looked up at the tree and their eyes widened in fear at the boy standing there.

There was a short boy, with fair white skin, short, spiky red hair and blue-green eyes. His eyes are ringed with thick black lines and he had the kanji for 'love' on his forehead on the left side.

He wore a black full body suit with t-shirt resembling sleeves, ¾ length legs and an open neck. He wore a white cloth over his right shoulder and the left side of his hips, and a wide band system over the left shoulder and the right side of his hips. With this he is carrying what appears to be a gourd. His forehead protector is over the band.

"G...Gaara!" Said Kankuro, trying to cover the fear in his voice. Sasuke however, was rather surprised that the Genin managed to get so close to him without him even noticing.

_'I can't underestimate this kid, he's something else, I can tell.'_ he thought.

"Why do you think we came all the way to this village Kankuro?" The short red haired Genin said, making Kankuro quickly respond.

"Listen Gaara, it isn't what you think! These guys started it!" He said, earning a rather loud snort from Naruto, earning the attention of most people there.

"If you call 'us starting it' a child running into you and you threatening to hurt him then yes, we started it." He said sarcastically. This caused Gaara to glare at Kankuro who began to sweat even more.

"Kankuro, if you lie to me..." He said, narrowing his eyes. "I'll kill you..." he said with a glare.

"I started it, you got me!" He said with false cheer. Naruto just rolled his eyes _'What a push-over, who is scared of their own teammate?'_ He thought to himself.

"I apologise on behalf of my teammates, Leaf Ninja." He said in another monotone.

Haku was thinking differently however. _'This boy, he arrived without anybody noticing. He was able to pacify his teammate with a few words and they look genuinely afraid of him, we need to exercise caution.'_

Sasuke was noticing the look the boys eyes were reflecting, similar to his own in the past. 'The eyes of someone who cares little for others, but his eyes show it so much more deeply, a disregard for life itself.' he thought eerily.

Gaara was analysing them also. 'The blond was able to almost completely diffuse the situation with nothing but words and was able to generate a powerful aura. The black haired boy was able to land a strike with an uneven stone from this distance right on Kankuro's hand. The girl... she stands with the stance of one with experience. We must be wary of these Genin. The blond... he seems so familiar.' He thought to himself.

"**Mortal! You asked me to keep an eye out for my brethren right?" **The Kyūbi said mentally to Naruto who was surprised for a moment before nodding. **"Well I'm pretty damn certain that the short red-head in the tree holds Shukaku; The Ichibi."** it said. Naruto widened his eyes at this.

_'This isn't good, if we do somehow get into the exams we may have to fight this guy, who knows how much of his Bijū's chakra he can use...'_ The blond thought to himself.

The Red-head then did a Sand Shunshin down to his teammates and began to leave with them. Naruto wanted to test something, so he called out to the redhead.

"Hey Gaara was it?" He shouted, making the red-head turn around and nod. "Nice to meet you one, I'm Naruto Uzumaki, but you can call me nine if you like." He said with a grin. Gaara's teammates widened their eyes in shock while Gaara simply smiled with bloodthirstiness. Sasuke and the Academy students were rather confused however.

_'What does the Dobe mean by that?'_ Sasuke thought. Yeah, he still calls him Dobe, he can't train that out.

"Then I look forward to seeing you in the exams... Uzumaki." He said before turning to leave. Naruto just smiled while Haku was worried, she knew what Naruto was referring to and quite frankly it scared her.

"Nice one Dobe, if it weren't for that little outburst when he mentioned Sakura you would've handled that perfectly." He said with a smirk, Naruto just growled and turned away.

"Yeah, yeah whatever... let's just get something to eat shall we?" He said, getting nods from his team before they left the Konohamaru corps to realize they'd been ditched.

A certain sound team in the trees were watching the whole thing for a little... information.

"Well, the Konoha team were certainly interesting. We need to look out for the Blond and the Black haired boy. That Red-head didn't look normal either. We may have some tough competition..." The bandaged male said.

The other two nodded before leaving.

**-Meanwhile, In the Hokage Tower-**

In a room in the Hokage tower, the Sandaime was sat at a large desk with a large assortment of Jounin in front of him. They were not simply Jounin however, they were all Jounin-sensei.

"Now then, since you are all here we can begin. I called you all here for a reason, though that reason should be apparent to you all already." The Sandaime said. The earned some murmers from around the room.

"Seven days from now, the first of July, we will begin the Chuunin selection exam." The Sandaime continued. "Those in charge of this years Rookie Genin, step forward." He said, making Kakashi, Asuma and Kurenai walk to the front.

"Now then, will any of you three nominate any of the Genin you teach? As you know any Genin that has completed eight missions will be eligible to enter the exams. While it is preferred to have completed twice that, it is not essential..." He said.

"Now then, Kakashi?" The Sandaime said, looking towards the masked elite jounin. Kakashi held up his middle and pointer fingers and began to speak, as though reciting a prayer.

"From the 7th Squad that I lead. Sasuke Uchiha, Naruto Uzumaki and the replacement of Sakura Haruno, Haku Yuki. I recommend those three to the Chunnin selection exam under my name, Kakashi Hatake." He said, earning some mutters.

"From the 8th Squad that I lead. Kiba Inuzuka, Shino Aburame and Hinata Hyuga. I recommend those three to the Chunnin selection exam under my name, Kurenai Yuhi." She said, causing the mutters to increase in intensity.

"From the10th Squad that I lead. Shikamaru Nara, Chōji Akamichi and Ino Yamanaka I recommend those three to the Chunnin selection exam under my name, Asuma Sarutobi." He said, causing the mutters to erupt into shouts.

"Wait a minute! Are you trying to destroy these kids!? They only left the academy a few months ago!" Iruka shouted from further back in the queue. (because apparently a random Chuunin academy teacher was there for no reason.)

"Well I don't know about my fellow Jounin, but I am very confident in my team. If you are worried about Naruto, don't be. He has grown greatly since leaving the academy." Kakashi said confidently, earning increased murmurs.

"Really? He's improved to a level that you think makes him ready for this?" Iruka said, genuinely surprised at the concept of the blond idiot that he liked so much becoming such an impressive Genin so early.

"Yes." Kakashi said plainly. "Now if that's all I'd like to go home." He finished. The Hokage nodded, allowing him to Shunshin away before Iruka could start ranting.

**-At...a Bridge, Next Day-**

Team 7 were just hanging out on their usual meeting place, a bridge in the middle of the village. They had lunch and generally enjoyed themselves, things were much better since Sasuke stopped being – quick so much of – a hard ass.

Haku and Naruto were talking while Sasuke was... resting his eyes.

"I thought Kakashi-sensei was over his lateness issues but it appears as if it was wishful thinking..." Said Naruto with a sigh. Haku just giggled a little and patted him on the shoulder before beginning to speak.

"Hey now, he may have important business to run, he is a Jōnin. They don't always foresee what they need to do." She said disarmingly. Naruto just smiled and shook his head.

"Why is it so hard to stay angry at people when you try to calm me down Haku-chan?" He said, somewhat jokingly. Haku however just blushed a little and smiled.

"Who knows, maybe I'm just a good influence on you Naruto-kun!" She said exuberantly. Naruto just laughed and looked towards the sky.

"That was never in question Haku-chan, you've done a lot for me since you came to the village, and I'd like you to know that I'm very thankful for it. I'm glad I met you." He said casually, as if it were easy as can be.

Haku however was lost for words. She had no idea she had such an impact on the boy's life, and she definitely wasn't aware he thought quite so highly of her. It made her heart soar to here those words from him and she couldn't help but hug him.

_**"This kid is such a damn idiot..." **The Kyūbi said to himself._

Sasuke was listening to the last half of their conversation and sighed. They were both so complacent. It was nice, that none of them really had any issues, but he could never truly forget what his brother did. He would try, but he may never let it go.

"Yo." Came a lazy voice from above. The Genin turned to see their teacher perched on one of the arches of the bridge.

"Hey sensei, what's the excuse? I assume you have one?" Naruto said somewhat bored. He'd waited long enough.

"I was going through last minute preparations for the Chuunin exams. I have nominated all of you, yes even you Haku, for the exams next week." He said. The Genin all widened their eyes before Naruto smiled.

"Hear that Haku-chan? You can do the exams with us!" He shouted, earning a smile and a shake of the head from both Kakashi and Sasuke, who were equally aware of his relationship with the girl.

"Here are your applications. My recommendation does not mean you have to take the exams, if all three of you sign the applications and go to the academy room 301 at 3pm five days from now you will be allowed to take the exams, if not, you can't. Ja Ne!" He said, using a Shunshin to leave.

"Well, guess I better get right to it then... Haku-chan, Sasuke, want to go train or something?" Naruto asked, earning smiles and nods from the both of them.

"All right then, let's go!" He said before they darted off.

**-At The Academy, Day of the Exams-**

Naruto, along with the rest of Team 7, were standing in front of the academy at 2:30 pm. All of them were ready for the exam, though for differing reasons.

For Naruto this was the next step towards his goal, to be Hokage of the Leaf Village. Even the fourth had to advance through the ranks Genin to Jōnin before becoming Hokage and he should be no different, if he were, he wouldn't get the respect he desired.

For Haku, this was an opportunity to stay with her precious people. The entirety of Team 7 were now precious to her, even if Naruto was still soundly in the lead in that department, if they were to advance without her she would be rather disappointed, so she would do her best.

For Sasuke, well he was here to test himself. That was what he would usually have said anyway. Now however, he was here to support his team; his friends. He was here to advance through the ranks to better protect his village, his home. The will of fire was beginning to burn in the young Uchiha.

Whatever their reasons, one thing was for certain. This exam would be exciting for all of them.

Oh how right they were.

They got to the _second_ floor to see a sign with 301 on it. Naruto rolled his eyes, Sasuke Scoffed and Haku's eyebrow twitched. How stupid did they think the Genin were?

Naruto however, thought it might be fun to increase the competition by letting the other teams in on the illusion. "Well now, that is a nice Genjutsu you have there. You do that all by yourselves?" He said sarcastically to the disguised Izumo and Kotetsu (disguised = younger). The two Chuunin smirked at this and decided to reply.

"Oh, noticed that did you? Just because you can see through it doesn't mean your ready to be a Chuunin!" Kotetsu said, dashing forward to test them. Naruto sighed and got ready to counter when a male wearing a green jumpsuit with orange leg warmers blocked the disguised Chuunin.. _'At least there's some orange...'_ Thought Naruto. Then he noticed his eyebrows, and gagged. He also had his black hair in a bowl-cut.

"Hey, what happened to the plan? I thought you were the one who said to hide our ability?" Said a pale-eyed boy. He had long dark-brown hair with a ponytail at the end and wore a black forehead protector that he wore snugly over his forehead. He wore a khaki shirt, under which he wore a dull blue shirt with a mesh armour underneath it, dark brown shorts, blue shinobi sandals. He also had bandages wrapped around his right arm, chest, and right leg.

Next to him was a girl with brown, in Chinese style buns. She wears a pink sleeveless qipao-style blouse with red sleeve trimmings and yellow fastening buttons as well as dark green pants and standard blue ninja sandals.

Lee replied. "I know, it's just..." The female with him just sighed and replied.

"Never mind, it's over. Forget it..." She said shaking her head. Lee then walked over to Haku. Haku began to slightly back away under his gaze. _'He is a... character.'_ Haku thought.

"My name is Rock Lee. You are Sakura, correct?" He said, earning a shake of the head from Haku before she replied.

"No, Sakura was injured during her last mission and I was chosen as her replacement on Team 7. My name is Haku Yuki, it is a... pleasure to meet you." She said, gritting her teeth trying to be nice at the end.

"In that case... please be my girlfriend, I will protect you with my life!" He said, giving her a thumbs up and a toothy smile that shined for no reason. Naruto's head immediately shot up at this and he decided to intervene.

"Woah there, let's not be hasty hmm? Oh, look at the time! Let's get up to the third floor guys!" He said quickly, grabbing Haku's wrist and dragging her along despite her protests that she could walk herself.

They arrived on the third floor only to to here a rather... familiar voice from above them. "Hey you, Uchiha, hold on!" Lee said from a balcony above them... even though he could have just followed the route they took.

"Lee was it? What is it you want?" He said neutrally. Lee simply took on a determined expression at this and continued.

"I wish to fight you, right here and right now!" He said, earning a sigh from Haku, a shake of the head from Naruto and a 'hn' from Sasuke.

"OK? Why should I?" He said, clearly bored with this charade. Naruto however had a thought, he walked over to Sasuke and whispered to him.

"Sasuke, fight him and throw the match. It'll make him underestimate us later on." He said deviously, Sasuke just smiled and looked at Lee.

"Never mind, let's do this!" He shouted, his false arrogance back up.

"Let's us fight!" Lee said.

(AN: Since Sasuke 'threw the match' it was a rerun of the canon fight, this chapter is long enough without that unnecessary fight in here.)

They got to room 301 and saw dozens upon dozens of other applicants for the exams. They were directing their gazes towards Team 7, but they just stood tall and smiled.

This was going to be fun.

**-End-**

**While I originally intended to at least get the written exams out of the way this chapter I felt that I should do all this other stuff first, since I find that all of it is important.**

**I thought giving Naruto a 'thrill of the fight' personality trait would be a nice mix up.**

**Anyway Review, Favorite, Follow etc.**

**LiamMorg. Out.**

**Ja Ne!**

**-Original Technique(s)-**

****Shōton: Suishouno Sampu zu (Crystal Release: Crystal Scatter)**: **The user forms numerous blunt crystals in his/her hand and throws them at the target, causing minor injuries. Best used for diversionary tactics or to direct the flow of the fight. (D-Rank. Offensive/Supplementary)


	6. Written Exam Woes

**I don't own Naruto... if I did I would post a chapter a week and make the tables turn in every one. Also there would need to be some crazy stuff every 2-3 chapters, for awesomeness. Oh, and one character would need to be massively overrated... 'cough' Madara. Yeah. Mooooving on!  
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**Regarding the cursed seal, I made a decision many of you may not like... so be warned. It was the best solution I could come up with.**

**Chapter 6: Written Exam Woes**

**-Start-**

Team 7 had just walked into room 301 in the academy building for the start of the Chunnin exams, needless to say they were a little surprised by the number of Genin applying for the exams, but realized that there were a lot of Genin in each village, so it wasn't hard to believe that there were so many for one exam.

All eyes were on them as soon as they entered the room, Sasuke and Haku stood looking as passive as humanly possible. Sasuke simply didn't care about being looked at, he was used to it with all his damn fan girls while Haku had been in her fair share of uncomfortable situations around Zabuza. Naruto was a little different however.

He was standing there with an almost predatory grin on his face, putting off a great deal of the onlookers. The few that didn't look away to begin with definitely changed their mind when he started releasing KI that seemed to come naturally to him, must have something to do with the mass of hatred in his stomach.

"**Bah, I've seen stronger KI from a cat. Then again, I'm related to a cat... forget it!" **The Kyūbi said from within Naruto, who raised an eyebrow at the casual conversation the fox was trying to initiate, maybe the fox really was bored.

"_Aww, I'm touched you want to chat Fuzzball." _Naruto said mockingly, earning a rather loud roar from within his head. He cut the mental link before the Kyūbi fried his brain with pure volume.

Naruto's strong performance earned a look of puzzlement from his teammates who decided to question the blond. "When did you start training your KI? It isn't something people just do..." Sasuke said. Naruto – who hadn't informed his Uchiha friend about the Kyūbi – decided to make an excuse.

"Oh, a little bit after the Wave mission, since Zabuza did such a good job of it." He said, deceitfully. The advantages of a giant fox within you is you learned how to be a bit of a trickster, maybe that's where his pranking side came from.

All conversation between the team ended with a loud and obnoxiously annoying scream echoed throughout the room. Said scream just so happened to consist of a certain black-haired boys name.

"SASUKE-KUN!" Came the voice of Ino, who jumped at Sasuke and wrapped her arms around his neck, earning a groan of irritation mixed with laughs from his teammates. "Where've you been Sasuke-kun? I haven't seen you in weeks!" She said.

After finishing his brief but still highly enjoyable laugh, Naruto decided to intervene before Sasuke could go nuts. "All right Ino, give the guy some space before he freaks out. Between you and me I think he's nervous around girls." He said playfully, earning a scowl from the Uchiha. Ino turned to him and raised her eyebrow.

"Who are you? You seem familiar." She said, while her teammates arrived from behind her. Shikamaru instantly raised his eyebrows while Chōji – like Ino – didn't quite realize that the blond was Naruto.

"I'm hurt Ino, I'd think you would remember a classmate. Then again, I can't really complain since my academy performance was... inadequate." He said thoughtfully. Ino thought about it for a moment before dropping her jaw.

"N-NARUTO?! What happened to you?!" She said, taking in the completely transformed blond in front of her. He was wearing decent clothes, he seemed less annoying (not that she could talk) and he even seemed taller. The blond just smirked and rolled his eyes, these reactions were so worth the effort.

"Oh well y'know. Haku-chan convinced me to study, I bought new clothes, I started eating healthier and the physical conditioning exercises helped to create a better me. Why do you ask?" He said jokingly, knowing none of the other Rookie Nine would've gone through such a transformation.

Shikamaru decided to cut in at this. "You are so troublesome Naruto, I swear I didn't think you could get more troublesome, but you did it." Naruto just laughed and shrugged it off.

"Well the gangs all... Who are you two?" Kiba, who had just arrived started, before spotting Naruto and Haku. Shikamaru decided to cut out the blond's joke before it could drag on.

"The girl is Haku, she's sorta new here. The guy is Naruto." He said casually, causing Team 8 to go through varying reactions. Kiba's jaw hit the ground, Shino raised his eyebrows – which was very emotionally implicating for him – and Hinata blushed as bright as she could.

_'Kami, Naruto-kun got hot! Now I just need to get him away from that tramp..."_ Hinata thought to herself. Since she'd seen Naruto and Haku going into her apartment building she had been improving quite a bit, mostly in the confidence department. She had rid herself of her baggy jacket and simply wore what she did before, albeit without it.

"No way! Naruto was a loser just a few months ago." Kiba replied, certain people were about to reply but Naruto beat them all to it.

"Yes I was. Now I am not, must I clear that up further or will that explanation suffice?" Naruto said, trying to make his sentence as complex as possible to mess with Kiba further. He simply nodded with a stupid look on his face while Naruto stifled a laugh.

"Could you guys keep it down? You are awfully noisy." Said a grey haired teenager with large circular glass. He wore a dark purple, high collar shirt and matching pants, a white under-shirt, fingerless gloves with armoured plates on the back and a white cloth waistband worn at an angle.

"You guys must be the new rookies right? You should probably try to act more mature, like the blond kid. It'll help you from looking like green-as-grass morons in front of the competition." He said advisability. Naruto inwardly smiled at the praise but couldn't help but think something was off about the boy, his smile seemed... fake.

"As much as I appreciate the praise, who are you exactly? Oh and before you say I should introduce myself first since I asked, I am Naruto Uzumaki. You are?" He said, the boy smiled at this, that was exactly what he was going to say, to mess with him.

"The name's Kabuto, pleasure to meet you Naruto-san." He said pleasantly. Naruto had to suppress a shiver, Kabuto was giving him bad vibes. "Oh and before you worry about me, you should worry about all the people behind you."

The Rookies turned around to see the room glaring at them and releasing a pretty pathetic amount of KI. Most of the Rookies looked perturbed by this and Naruto just sighed and decided to ease their nerves a little.

He stepped well in from of the rest of the Rookies and released KI of his own before putting his malicious smirk back on. "If you are going to intimidate us, be prepared for us to reply in kind." He said ominously. The the competition looked away either in fear or disappointment at failing to intimidate the blond.

The rest of the Rookie Nine were rather taken aback by the blonds actions, he was indeed fearsome when he tried to be. Haku and Sasuke just rolled their eyes at this before Haku decided to speak up. "Was that really necessary Naruto-kun?" She asked with a slightly playful smile. Naruto just smiled at her without replying.

"So Kabuto-san, what was it you were saying?" Naruto said with a smirk. Kabuto just smiled and shook his head at the blond before Naruto continued speaking. "So you appear a decent amount older than us, I assume you've taken the exams before?"

"Yes, this is my seventh attempt." Kabuto replied earning wide-eyed expressions from most of the Genin. Haku was not quite captured by this statement and decided to question it.

"How is it that you failed that many times? Most people would've given up or waited to try again after a long enough training period." She said. Kabuto just looked at her with a smile but was inwardly cursing at her perceptiveness.

"Yes, you'd think so, but the exams are rather hard and every time I come here I get more information about the competition." He said, earning a slight nod from the girl. Naruto decided to ask the boy a question.

"Care to share any of it? Don't worry if you don't want to." He said, trying at least to seem considerate despite not really trusting the boy. Kabuto just nodded and took out some cards.

"These are my Ninja Info cards, if I channel my chakra into them any information I've gathered on a ninja of my choosing will be shown to me." He said, earning a nod from the blond. "So, who do you guys want information on?" He asked, making Naruto and Sasuke reply.

"Gaara of Suna." Naruto said.

"Rock Lee of Konoha." Sasuke said immediately after, however Kiba decided to get his own in.

"Don't forget Naruto Uzumaki of Konoha!" He said with a grin, earning an unhappy glare from said boy.

"Do tell Kiba, why you'd want information on a fellow shinobi of the our graduating class? Doesn't it seem unnecessary?" He said, hoping it would get him to retract the question, but Kiba just smirked and didn't reply.

"You already know their villages? That's no fun..." Kabuto said with a mock pout. He pulled out 3 cards and looked a them carefully before channelling chakra into the first one, making an image appear along with some charts. The image depicted Rock Lee.

"Firstly, we have Rock Lee. He's one year older than you all and he along with his team have completed 20 D-Ranks and 12 C-Ranks. Their Jounin-Sensei is Maito Gai. Interesting, he was the dead last in the academy of his year, showing very little talent. Since leaving he has become a Taijutsu expert. He is seemingly... unable to use Ninjutsu or Genjutsu? Weird. This is their first time in the exams as of yet."

"Next up is Gaara. Known by the name 'Gaara of the Desert', he has been on 8 C ranks and a single B-rank, as a Genin. His teammates are his siblings Temari and Kankuro. He along with his siblings are the children of of the current Kazekage. That's all I have besides a rumour that he had never been injured in a mission." He said. This impressed everyone, worried Haku and earned a slight nod from Naruto.

_"Hey Kyūbi." _He said, getting an animal grunt in return._ "I don't suppose Shukaku gives any remarkable abilities to its Jinchūriki does it?" _He asked.

"_**From what I remember his Jinchūriki gain full control over sand and the ability to defend themselves with it without even trying. It's really annoying, the amount of times that damn Tanuki saved his own ass from my wrath with that sand is too high to count." **_The fox replied. Naruto simply sighed at this, he would not be fun to fight.

Based on the way the red-head acted during their brief encounter with him, it was clear he was not a very... nice... individual. He openly threatened to kill what had been now identified as his own brother, so the three Genin of Team 7 had no doubt that the Suna ninja would have no qualms about taking their lives should he be given an opportunity to do so.

Naruto was surprisingly a little excited at the concept of fighting someone who'd never been injured. It would be such a surprise to the red-head and his siblings and he could see the look on their faces now. He'd not felt so excited since he was told that he would be given a C-rank mission, not that the mentioned C rank went remotely well.

"Lastly we have Naruto Uzumaki." He said, showing a very outdated picture of Naruto, still wearing his hideous orange outfit and having none of the muscle or increased height he'd gained since the Wave mission. "His teammates are Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno... Sakura was injured and replaced by Haku Yuki on their last mission. Their Jounin-sensei is Kakashi Hatake. Let's see... 13 D-ranks, 2 C-ranks and... an A-rank mission?!" He said with false surprise. This got a reaction out of Team 8, but since Team 10 already knew, they were disinterested.

"An A-rank mission? When the hell did this happen?" Kiba spoke incredulously. Naruto simply laughed at the look on his face while Sasuke replied.

"It was a little while ago now. It was meant to be a C-rank, but A-rank missing nin tend to change that..." He said cryptically. Kiba just sighed and allowed Kabuto to finish.

"Now then, moving on. He was the dead last in the academy but saw a drastic improvement since the A-rank mission he went on. He had learned the Shadow Clone jutsu, gained a noteworthy understanding and usage of **Dōton **ninjutsu and even recently unlocked a **Kekk**..." He said, before Naruto's hand slammed over the boys mouth to quiet him.

"That, is a secret. Understood?" He said fiercely, not giving the boy any room to negotiate. Kabuto was a little surprised by the rather forceful action from the thoughtful blond. The Rookie Nine barely managed to see the blond move before he was telling the grey haired teen off.

"Sure, no problem." Kabuto said. 'Guess I won't be able to make his job any harder hmm?' He thought. His master wanted to give the blond and his black haired female friend a little trouble to make his objective easier, but since nobody asked about Haku and Naruto was being... non-negotiable... it wasn't exactly an option.

"What was he about to say Naruto?" Shikamaru asked, catching the small amount of what he started to say. He had a pretty good idea of what was going to be said, but it was better to hear it from the source.

"He was about to reveal my trump card, which in a competitive exam, isn't something I take kindly to." The boy replied, refusing to reveal it until necessary. The Rookies looked a little surprised, Naruto was never known for subtlety or forethought. He had changed a lot.

"Well that's enough of that." Kabuto said, getting their attention before continuing on. "We have quite the turnout this year, I can assure you there aren't usually this many Genin in the exams. There are shinobi from Suna, Konoha, Kusa, Oto... all the best from these villages are currently right here." He said, but one could easily notice the look of thought on his face before he continued. "Maybe not so much Oto. They are a new minor village that only recently came together, so they probably aren't all that much."

"Heh, I guess we'll see if they're worthy to be here soon. Most likely not, for most of them." Naruto said, a little loudly on purpose, to try and annoy the competition. Most of the audience in the room heard him and looked rather annoyed.

Kankuro and the Sand ninja overheard him perfectly, they all remained impassive except Kankuro who seethed seeing the blond who had irritated his so. "It's that damn blond again... wait 'till I get my hands on him!" He raved. Temari sighed and Gaara ignored him.

Gaara was too busy studying the blond. At first glance he seemed like any other Rookie Genin, a little too confident and annoying. However any who held a conversation with him could tell that he was not just a fighter, but a thinker. He may not have experience in battle but it seemed like he knew how to feel in a fight, it was almost as if he had people ready to fight him at all times. Like clones that could fight back.

Team Gai recognised the blond as one of Sasuke's teammates from their earlier duel. Tenten smirked at his slightly overconfident words. "For a Rookie Genin he sure seems confident in himself doesn't he? Almost as if he believes those words." She said thoughtfully. Unlike most she was a serious Kunoichi and could know talent when she saw it, and the blond was definitely talented in some way.

"Whatever, he is simply another to go against his fate. Any who are proclaimed the dead lasts will remain as such. They may appear to get powerful but they will never defeat those who are heralded as geniuses or prodigies. It is simply the way of the world and he is fighting against it." Neji said with a bored look. Tenten gained a tick mark at yet another 'Fate' speech. Was Neji a broken record or what?

"Heh, it's that brat from before." A certain spiky haired Oto Genin spoke. "We should show everyone who the real powerhouses in here are, and who better than the four eyed asshole who said Oto was nothing?" He said with a smirk. Their bandaged unofficial leader smirked back and nodded.

"Yes, a great idea. Let us show them the power of sound!" He said before they all disappeared from where they stood.

Only the most talented Genin in the room actually picked up on the movements of the Oto shinobi. Team Gai narrowed their eyes at the three, wondering what they could be up to. Gaara and Temari – who were the observant ones of their team – were simply waiting to see what the trio would do.

Naruto smiled deviously as he felt an unusual sensation of ill-intent approaching from behind him. He was confused as to what this feeling was, but he decided not to question it. He turned to see the bandaged Oto shinobi approaching Kabuto at a rather high speed. The blond smirked, wanting to show up some of the competition further.

The bandaged Genin went for a punch on Kabuto only to find that he was stopped suddenly. He turned to see Naruto grabbing his arm just below the gauntlet, – whether through luck or intent – he'd managed to avoid hitting it and causing it to go off. He blond simply spun his body and threw the Genin over his head and smashed him head-first into the ground.

Naruto was smiling widely at this, before he noticed something odd. Kabuto's glasses had broken and he was throwing up on the ground. The blonds expression turned studious as he tried to discern what happened to the grey-haired teen. Then he looked down at the Oto Genin and looked at the arm he'd grabbed. The sleeve had fallen down due to his angle to reveal a strange metal gauntlet.

'I can only assume he did something with this gauntlet, but what exactly?' The blond thought, before hearing a snarl inside his mind. He smiled slightly knowing the Kyūbi would answer his question through an insult.

"_**Are you really that foolish mortal? They hail from Oto. The clue is in the name. His gauntlet must manipulate sound waves to attack the inner ear and effect the equilibrium of the target." **_The fox said to him. Naruto just grinned further before punting the Oto Genin back to his stunned teammates.

The Rookies were looking on in shock at the efficiency the blond displayed. His attack was near perfectly done – even if Kabuto still got hit – and the enemy didn't even get a chance to react.

"Nice weapon you got there. Manipulating sound waves to effect the inner ear? Genius. I sure hope that's enough for you during the exam, 'cause I kinda doubt it." The blond said mockingly, earning a shocked expression from the bandaged shinobi.

'He... he analysed my jutsu from a single use?!' He screamed internally. Naruto was just laughing at the look on the Genin's face. He scowled and rose from the floor before walking back towards the back of the room.

Naruto walked over to Kabuto, he didn't trust the guy but that was no need to be an ass so he decided to see if he was all right. However he didn't get the chance as Haku beat him to it.

"Kabuto-san, are you OK? How are you feeling?" She asked softly. Naruto frowned, for some reason not liking her being so courteous to other people. 'I have really gotta figure this out, it's really getting on my nerves. My reactions around her aren't logical at all... at least I don't think they are. Argh! This is so annoying!' The blond raged in his mind.

The Kyūbi just sighed at the blond. _**'He is so damn clueless. Still it must be even worse for him, being smarter and still being unable to figure it out. Ah... this is why I wanted access to his senses, it's like a movie!' **_It thought to itself, for an ageless mass of chakra and hatred, it was kind of an asshole.

Kabuto slowly rose to his feet, the effects of the attack beginning to wane before he turned and smiled genuinely at the girl "I'm fine, thank you miss...?" He inquired, Haku simply smiled and replied to the teen.

"Call me Haku, and don't thank me for helping another." She spoke honestly, she was always kind and considerate and found it hard to believe people needed reasons to help others. It was a little sickening honestly.

Before their conversation could continue a large explosion of smoke appeared near the board at the front of the room.

"Settle down you pathetic Genin, and nobody should be fighting unless we say so!" A voice called out from the same cloud. It began to gradually clear revealing the proctor of the exam along with a host of Chunnin examiners. They all wore grey utility flak jackets. The leader of the group, easily discernible by the long black cloak and bandanna-like forehead protector, and had two long slash marks that ran down his face and eyes spoke to the participants of the exam. "I apologise for the delay. I am the proctor of the first test of the Chunnin exams, Ibiki Morino. However, you guys can just call me the bane of your existence!" He said, earning a few shivers. Naruto just huffed and rolled his eyes.

"Now then, first things first. There will be NO COMBAT unless I say so. Even if we do approve of it then lethal force is strictly prohibited. Nobody who wishes to become a Chunnin in their miserable lives will disobey me. Am I understood? He continued, earning some mutters and complaints.

"Now if everyone is quite ready, we'll begin the first part of the Chunnin examinations! Turn in your applications at the desk and we shall determine where you are sat. The written exam will begin once everyone is seated and ready." He finished, earning sighs, groans and complaints.

Naruto just shook his head. Why would the examinations for becoming a Chunnin require a written test. 'Maybe it's to see if we have the intellect or mind set of a Chunnin... then again Kotetsu isn't the smartest guy...' He mused before taking his seat, directly beside Hinata. He couldn't help but notice that she seemed... off. Like him, different.

"Hello Naruto-kun, how nice to see you." She said without any stutter and actually a hint of playfulness in her voice. "Good luck in the test, maybe I'll see you afterwards." She said suggestively. Naruto raised his eyebrows at her improved confidence and lack of a stutter, but decided that it was an improvement.

"Uh yeah. Maybe I will." He said vaguely, a little concerned about her attitude. She blushed a little and winked at him.

(AN: Canon rules, I can't be bothered to write them out. Every fic I read does so and they are sooooooo boring to read every damn time.)

"The final question will be given out 15 minutes before the end of the test. You have exactly one hour from... now! The first stage of the Chunnin exams, has begun!" Ibiki shouted, making all Genin flip their question sheets over, causing panic to spread throughout most of the Genin in the room.

'Interesting.' Haku thought to herself while looking over the overly difficult questions given to them by the examiners. 'These questions are all extremely complicated for anyone of Genin rank... I think Sakura may have been able to answer these, but most within this room can't. Naruto-kun despite his improvements wouldn't be able to and Sasuke I am unsure of.' She quickly scanned the room she was in to see what the reactions of the others were, and like she predicted many of them looked like they were freaking out, panic evident across their faces.

The second member of Team 7 was studying the paper laying in front of him with an expressionless face. He took a few moments to fully look over everything on the page before sitting back with a smile. 'Well... isn't that interesting...' he said to himself. 'I can't even begin to answer a single one of these problems. Like hell anyone else here can.'

Naruto just sighed as he looked over his questions. It was clear no Genin would actually be expected to answer the questions so there was obviously something going on here. Even a Chunnin would have difficulty answering them, hell some Jounin couldn't!

He was going over everything the examiners said throughout the introduction to the first portion of the exam with closed eyes and a concentrated frown on his face. He got to the part Ibiki mentioned about cheating. Cheating in most cases would be ground for immediate disqualification. Therefore... 'Ah, so that's it. You are expected to cheat without being seen. A ninja must be able to work in the shadows, never being seen while accomplishing their objectives. Information gathering is very important in our line of work.' He said with a smile. He opened his eyes when he felt a small chill at his leg.

He looked down to see a mirror. Not just any mirror however, it was a mirror made of ice. He looked into it to see Haku smiling at him before the image distorted to reveal her test paper, which had been filled out. 'She must've found the answers somewhere... maybe some of the people here are in disguise. Still, that's Haku-chan for you, all ways thinking about others.' He thought happily, before writing down everything he saw on her sheet. Then the mirror distorted to show her face again, and she gave him a small wink before the mirror shattered.

Sasuke of course, was simply copying everything a certain person was writing by studying his hand movements with the **Sharingan**, all the while thinking. 'I hope he actually has the correct answers. It would be pretty embarrassing to copy some random crap some idiot decided to jot down in panic.'

Naruto smiled at the fact that they had a system to get around this information gathering exercise. He didn't really have anything to gather information with. 'Hmm... maybe I can glean something for my own **Kekkei Genkai** from Haku-chan's? Maybe I'll try making some mirrors...' He mused.

He leaned back and just closed his eyes after flipping his sheet over so that others couldn't copy it. It was a great way to prevent the answers spreading around and – as such – allowing more teams to get through.

After a little while, the time for the first nine questions had passed and Ibiki decided to move onto the main event. "All right, listen up brats! Here is the tenth and final question! Before I give you the question you need to know there are some special rules surrounding it before we begin.

"These rules only apply to this question so listen up! Oh, and try not to have a heart attack..." He said with a chuckle, causing a little panic to spread before he continued.

**-At the Jounin lounge-**

While the exams were underway, the Jounin-sensei of all the participating teams were forced to just wait until the results could be heard. On that note, Kakashi, Kurenai and Asuma along with the other nameless sensei were just relaxing while the exams took place. Gai was... somewhere. Probably something to do with youth. Asuma – having heard about the Wave mission from Kakashi's team – took a drag of his cigarette before addressing the masked Jounin.

"So Kakashi, I heard about your little mission to Wave from your Genin. That was a mess wasn't it?" He said with a smirk – allowing Kakashi the chance to sigh before continuing. "Oh and I hear your training habits aren't the best either. If my dad didn't kill you over that you must be a hell of a sweet talker."

"Yes well, it went fine in the end. We saved the country from Gatou, took down an A-rank missing nin and recruited a new bloodline user to the village. I call that a positive outcome." The Masked man said, earning a look of thought followed by a nod from Asuma who couldn't exactly disagree.

"What about your training habits Kakashi? Jounin-sensei are expected to do their best to ensure that their teams are prepared for missions and your team seemed unprepared from my standpoint." Kurenai pointed out.

Kakashi just sighed at this, he couldn't exactly blame her. He was a terrible teacher in the beginning, hoping that their teamwork would actually improve so he stuck to it. Then it improved without him even doing anything, clearly they just needed time.

"Yes Kurenai I have... recognised my shortcomings in that regard and made a substantial effort to try and correct my mistake." He said glumly, causing her to back down. The man clearly regretted his actions, so she had no reason to push him about it.

"This is so boring." Kakashi stated to himself. "We can't even carry out missions for the next month until the exams end. What am I supposed to do for a whole month?" He said, obviously unpleased with the arrangement.

"Well you may see your brats back sooner than you would expect Kakashi." Asuma said with a grin, earning a raised eyebrow from Kakashi – not that you could tell if he raised more than one – before he questioned the man.

"What do you know that we don't Asuma?" Kakashi asked the man, earning a dark chuckle.

The black haired man just shrugged and smiled before saying. "Just that the word around is that Ibiki is in charge of the first portion of the exams."

Kakashi looked a little upset by this, a pretty good reaction to get out of the lazy Jounin. However, his expression eventually returned to normal before he sighed. "Oh well. My team shouldn't be a problem, you should more concerned about your own." He said before getting an interruption from Kurenai.

"Who is this Ibiki? The way you mentioned him made him seem like a pretty tough customer." She said.

Asuma just rolled his eyes before addressing her. "I guess you wouldn't have heard of him, seeing as how you're a rookie Jounin and all." He said, earning a scowl from Kurenai which gave him a cheap laugh before continuing. "Ibiki Morino. Expert in the arts of torture and interrogation. Head of Konoha's T & I department. He won't hurt the Genin. Their minds however... well he won't go easy on them." He said cryptically.

**-Back with the Genin-**

First and foremost..." Ibiki began, casting his unflinching and fearsome gaze across the room of Chunnin hopefuls. "... it is completely up to you whether or not you take the tenth questions."

"Wh...wait a second! What do you mean 'choose'?" Said Temari, immediately unnerved by what the scarred man said. "Why would that even be a rule? Is there some reason why we shouldn't take the tenth question?"

Ibiki's eyes were cold and impassive as he looked over to the girl. He closed his eyes and looked up for a moment before reopening them and looking grimly at the examinees.

"If you choose not to take the tenth question your score regardless of prior questions will be automatically reduced to zero. So, put plainly, if you do not take the tenth question you will fail your entire team." He said, earning out-roars of anger and panic.

"What the hell kinda rule is that?!" One of the Genin who only existed for this arc spoke.

"Well in that case we'd be pretty dumb not to take it!" Another one yelled.

"And now for the final rule..." Ibiki started, taking a pause to further torment them. "...if you decide that you will take the final question, but get it incorrect, then not only will you fail the exam outright but you will be barred from taking the Chunnin exam ever again!"

Any that were silent up until that point lost their composure at this. Their cries of shock, rage or fear filling the air of the rather large room. Many stood up in protest, one of these people being Kiba, who jumped up with speed that caused his chair to fly back into the row behind him. He stabbed his finger in the direction of the proctor before yelling out over all the people in the room.

"That is completely ridiculous! I know for a fact there are people here who've done these exams before! You can't do this!"

Ibiki, rather than getting annoyed at the brat's attempt to accuse him of being unfair, simply laughed with a sinister undertone that was easily recognisable to all the Genin in the room.

"Well unlucky for you then. You guys got me this year, and I make the rules now!" He said, sending chills to all the Genin hopefuls in the room. "However, if you still think I'm being unfair, I DID give you an option other than to take it and fail, you can simply walk out and try again next time."

The Genin were silent. Those who were arguing moments ago were now pondering the two choices. Those who were once confident in their abilities were now wavering under the chance of never being a Chunnin. If they forfeit they could at least try in another half year... it wasn't an easy decision and as such it didn't take long for people to answer.

It took mere moments for the first Genin to fold, he couldn't take the pressure and as such he and his team were escorted out of the room. While his team looked upset, they didn't blame him, it was a tough choice.

As more and more Genin folded and left the room in either a shout of a forfeit or a silent rise followed by a walk of shame Naruto simply sat in his seat, back against his chair in complete silence with his eyes closed. He was pondering this predicament he was in. First, there was the fact that being a ninja and the Hokage in future was his life; his dream. Then there was his team, if he failed the questioned he failed them both.

Then again there were things he couldn't identify. The examiner had said that failure to complete the last question correctly would force you to stay Genin for life and yet, he'd never heard of such a thing happening. Not to mention convincing every other village in the exams that such a thing was a good idea would take a lot of negotiation. Nothing seemed to add up.

What would he do if he failed? Stay a Genin for life? Maybe, maybe not. He really could not afford to fail the exams. His family, the Uzumaki clan; HIS clan's future and reputation rested with him and any other possible survivors of his clan's destruction. If he were to fail now he'd dishonour his entire family.

He'd thought all he needed to. The exams would need to be done, if he failed he stuck as a Genin but to be afraid of a chance of failure wouldn't fit a ninjas mindset. Ninja risked their lives every mission, so to forfeit on the chance of failure would be a disgrace.

He opened his eyes and they now burned with determination. To stay a Genin and embarrass himself and his clan would be nothing compared to showing the world his clan couldn't take this level of stress.

Ibiki looked over to him and was taken aback a little by the look in the blonds eyes, the eyes of someone who'd never give in. He inwardly smirked, thinking that the blond had probably figured it out. He figured just for that, he'd give the blond a little extra test. One that was a little less conventional.

"Hey, you seem pretty calm blondie, got something to share with the rest of the class?" He said, causing attention to shift to the blond who closed his eyes and smiled. "What? Not afraid of being a Genin for life, or are you too stupid to realize what's going on here?" He said, trying to bait the boy who just chuckled and shook his head.

Naruto just stared right at the proctor and replied. "I refuse to embarrass the memory of my family; my clan by running from a threat such as this. If you believe I'll fold for that then you are going to be waiting for a while." He said, not a hint of doubt in his voice. Naruto had a little extra to add however and spoke again. "Also, how can I be Hokage if I'm afraid to take a risk?" He finished rhetorically.

Ibiki smiled while many of the ninja in the room simply murmured amongst themselves, but none more than the Rookie 9 and other Konoha shinobi. Kiba – being the loudmouth he is – pipped up at the blond.

"What are you talking about you idiot? You don't have a clan remember?" He said mockingly, Naruto just smiled and decided to elaborate.

"I am Naruto Uzumaki, son of Kushina Uzumaki of the Uzumaki clan, founders of Uzushiogakure and masters of Fuinjutsu. My clan and parents may be gone and their home destroyed but that will not stop me from honouring their memory." He said with a fierce look, causing Kiba to sit back down and everyone in the room to go silent. Haku – who had been listening to the whole thing – couldn't help but smile and sigh in joy.

'They would be proud Naruto-kun, I have no doubt.' She thought to herself.

'Unbelievable. This brat has totally changed the atmosphere, I bet nobody even remembers my speech after that little outburst. Whether he realized it or not he has saved half these people from forfeiting along with realizing the true reason for the question. Good job kid, good luck in the next section...' Ibiki thought with a smirk.

'Not much longer now, may as well wrap this up.' He thought, looking at the clock and realizing that not much time was left, meaning that any here deserved to pass. He simply sighed and spoke to the blond.

"Interesting speech, let's see if it helps shall we?" He responded strongly. "Let us get to the final question..."

He waited a moment, taking in the last sight of the Genin he'd get before the test ended. He smiled seeing that they were actually quite relaxed.

"To all those who remain... I congratulate you on passing the first test!"

Silence reigned after that little assortment of words. Many of the shinobi gaped and tried to muster up some words while Naruto was thinking to himself. 'If I had backed down I would have been dodging a free pass... thank god for my determination.' he thought.

He decided to speak up at this. "Clever game Ibiki-san, there never was a tenth question was there? In fact, all the questions were a ruse weren't they?" He said with a slightly amused grin. This caused many Genin to drop their jaws, they'd wasted an hour and almost forfeited the exam over _NOTHING!_.

"Correct blondie. The tenth question was a risk taking simulation. Put simply the choice to take the question, was the answer. The choice to leave, was the WRONG answer." He said with a hearty smile. This resulted in more murmuring as many Genin were rather annoyed by this.

Temari, again, decided to pipe up about the fact she'd just wasted all this time. "What the hell was the point of the first nine questions!? Were they just there to put a smokescreen over the real test?" She shouted at him. He simply barked a laugh and replied.

"Why, of course not. Every part of this exam will serve its own purpose. The first nine questions of the written exam are no different. They helped you to use your information gathering abilities. Like I said, the test depended on your whole team succeeding. Therefore, you would all try your hardest not to fail your team, and that would pressure you all. The questions themselves were far too hard to be completed by Genin – most Genin anyway – and as such you would come to the conclusion that cheating was required. Those who cheated foolishly demonstrated poor information gathering skills which can lead to your death on a mission..." He said, summing up the intent of the first nine questions and taking a pause to let the words sink in.

He took off his bandanna showing his head to all the Genin present. None of them expected what he was hiding underneath it.

It was littered with various scars, burn marks, deep screw holes, everything you could possibly dream up. The man's head was quite literally the definition of 'scarred'. The majority of Genin felt a little sick or even disgusted at the sight.

"...Because there are times when information is more important than the life of any one shinobi and as such many people on missions and battlefields will risk everything and anything to get it..." He said, re-wrapping his head. "When you are misinformed, things can go terribly wrong. Information not only saves lives, but can prevent wars, oust corruption and much more! Therefore we made you gather information through cheating, to test you and to show you the necessity of information gathering skills." He finished.

Suddenly, one of the windows near Ibiki burst open. Ibiki merely placed his hand over his face and shook his head, he knew what was going on and was quite frankly getting a little sick of this. Through the window a black ball of cloth burst into the room.

The ball unfurled to show a banner which showed the words 'The sex and single proctor of the second exam, Anko Mitarashi!'. The woman referred to on said banner was standing besides the banner with her hands in her pockets. The males of the audience simply dropped their jaws at her... revealing outfit.

"All right you brats, if you thought you were out of the woods think again!" Anko shouted to the Genin in front of her, adding a bit of drama with a wave of the arm. "I'm Anko Mitarashi, the proctor of the second stage of the Chunnin Exams! Now let's go! Follow me!" She said, pumping her arm for good measure.

_**Cricket. Cricket.**_

Silence simply followed her... introduction. Ibiki just stood there with a twitching eyebrow at her actions.

"You're early Anko... again."

Anko just blushed in embarrassment and then proceeded to rub the back of her head in a very familiar manner while chuckling at the Genin nervously. Then she noticed the numerous Genin in front of her and yelled out.

"78?!" She shouted towards Ibiki who just shook there impassively. "What the hell? Have you gone soft? _26 teams!_"

"What can I say, there are some impressive Genin this year." He replied.

"Whatever. All right you brats, follow me! I'll explain the second exam when we reach our destination." She said before walking to the door, the Genin following her out.

Haku, Naruto and Sasuke regrouped at the door before walking together. Sasuke just smirked at Naruto and decided to mess with him a little.

"Nice speech Naruto, real heart warming stuff. Maybe you were cut out for a more verbal profession?" He said with a smirk, earning a huff from Naruto.

"Very funny Sasuke-_KUN!_" He replied, finishing with a fake girly voice. Haku giggled at this while Sasuke started exuding steam.

"Not. Funny. Naruto." He said, gritting his teeth. Naruto just shrugged him while laughing heartily off and they continued on their journey.

**-At Training Ground 44, AKA the Forest of Death!-**

Anko and the Genin finally stopped at their destination. It was certainly an interesting place. It was essentially a huge forest surrounded by an equally huge fence to keep people out or... thing in. It was deadly silent except for the occasional ominous sounding animal noise. This place certainly didn't inspire confidence in the Genin hopefuls, some wished they could go back to the mental torture of the first section of the exams.

"What a lovely place, we should come here more often, right guys?" Naruto said to his teammates who simply dead panned at his while he smiled. Haku was thinking on the opposite lines.

'I don't think even Zabuza-sama would like to spend any noteworthy length of time in there, it seems to exude an ominous aura.' Haku was not looking forward to this.

'Great, a massive forest with an equally massive fence. I already love where this is going... if I die in here I am so haunting you Itachi.' Sasuke thought to himself with a frown.

"Welcome to the 44th training ground, also known to the locals as the forest of death!" Anko said with an unnerving level of cheeriness. She sighed blissfully making the Genin question her sanity. "My own little home away from home. Of course, I doubt any of you will find it all that entertaining or inviting. You'll be too worried for your lives, so feel free to call it 'hell'!" She said with a smile again.

"Oh I don't know about that, I think this place looks lovely! I wish I could live here." Naruto said sarcastically, hoping to get a reaction out of the purple haired proctor. It did, obviously.

"Oh, we have a comedian do we?" Anko said sweetly before throwing a kunai at Naruto. He simply smiled, moved slightly to the side, and hooked a finger through the hole on its end. He then began to twirl said kunai, pretending to be oblivious to the shocked reaction most of the Genin gave him.

"My, my, aren't you just a ball of surprises. Let's hope that wasn't a fluke, or this forest will eat you alive!" She said with more cheer. The Genin sweat-dropped. Yep, she was insane.

"Now, before we begin." She said, pulling out a stack of wavers. "You are all going to need to sign one of these, they're wavers that state that you know and accept the risks involved with entering Training Ground 44 and as such and injuries and/or deaths that occur inside it are in no way our fault! You can't expect me to take the fall for you brats, do you?" She said smirking at the Genin's shocked reactions. 'Yeah, this is why I agreed to this.' she thought happily.

"Now then, pass these out amongst yourself while I go through the rules." She said, passing a stack to a nearby Genin who started to pass it along.

"Long story short, this is a no-holds-barred survival test. There are 44 gates around the training ground. There is a tower at the centre of the forest, which extends around it in a 10 km radius. There is a river that cuts right through it." She said, pointing at a map that she had set up every time she mentioned a noteworthy thing.

"Your objective is simple. Get both a heaven and earth scroll to the tower. You'll start with one per team, you must fight for the other. However there is always the chance you could end up with 4 earth scrolls, so you must have one of each, it doesn't matter how many of one you have without the other." She said, earning looks of slight confusion from the Genin.

"There is a time limit of 120 hours – or five full days to acquire both scrolls and reach the tower."

"F-five days?!" Ino exclaimed. She didn't exactly want to spend a day within the massive, ominous forest. She'd probably die before that.

"What about food?!" Chōji yelled in shock.

"There's plenty of food in there, you just have to find it or catch it. Don't eat any of the poisonous plants though, and keep and eye out for the man eating beasts and whatnot! Wouldn't want to give them a free meal, would we?"

Chōji wasn't exactly pleased about this. No, he was really not looking forward to not having any new snacks for five whole days. At least there were some opportunities to eat in there. Maybe there was an all you can eat buffet in the tower?

Anko chuckled seeing the effect she had on the plump shinobi before continuing. "There are two ways to fail. First, a team member dies or is unable to continue. The second is failing to get two scrolls, obviously." She said neutrally.

"Can we quit?" Skikamaru asked, earning a knock on the head from Ino.

"If you are scared, back out now. Once you are in you are STAYING in for at least five days. Unless you'd like to take the easy way out, I wouldn't advise that though." She said.

"OK, last rule – Don't open the scrolls. Those who do... well, that'll be a surprise now wont it!" She said. "Well that's all. Take your forms to the booth behind me in exchange for your starter scroll. Oh, and I have one final piece of advice for you guys..." She said, before changing her expression completely.

"...try not to die. Once you have a scroll an instructor will take you to a gate." She said seriously.

**-At the 12th Gate-**

It didn't take too long before all the teams had grabbed their scrolls and scattered to their designated gates in preparation for the start to the exams. Sasuke was looking at the scroll in his hand, marked 'heaven'. This meant they would need to find an earth scroll, of course. Naruto and Sasuke were grinning in anticipation while Haku had a serious expression. Naruto turned to Sasuke before speaking.

"Hey Sasuke." He began, getting the Uchiha's attention.

"What's up Naruto?" He replied.

"Give the scroll to Haku." He said, Sasuke rose an eyebrow before enquiring about his choice of scroll carrier.

"Should I ask why?" He said, slightly irritated the blond didn't trust him with it.

"A few reasons actually. The first being she is our longest range fighter, her senbons and speed making it hard to catch along with her ice mirrors allowing her to be almost impossible to capture while she's in one." He said seriously, earning a nod from the Uchiha. At least the blond had a fair reason. He handed the scroll to Haku who nodded in thanks.

"So, what's the plan?" Sasuke asked. He was aware – unfortunately – that he was now the least tactical team member on Team 7. It annoyed him to no end initially but now he'd accepted it.

"I have an idea actually." Haku said, gaining the teams attention. "Naruto-kun, you said you received whatever information your shadow clones do right?" She continued, earning a nod. "Then why don't you use them to scout in pairs of two's to find and possibly incapacitate other teams?" She purposed.

Naruto thought about it for a moment, seeing little fault with the plan he smiled and agreed to it. "What will we be doing in the meantime?" Naruto asked. Sasuke thought about this for a moment before replying.

"We can either set up some sort of camp and set up traps and whatnot or we could head for the river and get a good location, but obviously run the risk of other teams finding us." He said. Naruto smiled and nodded again.

"Yeah, the River sounds good. So are we all set?" He said, earning nods. "Then let's get 'em on!" He said. The other team members smiled and reached into their pouches while Naruto smiled and looked back at how they got 'them'.

_**Flashback no Jutsu!**_

_During the time between the announcement of the Chunnin exams and the actual exams themselves, Team 7 were walking the streets after a rather tiring training session. Naruto had been training his speed and chakra control, Haku had been training her **Suiton** ninjutsu while Sasuke had been doing just about everything in equal quantities._

_They were walking through the shopping district when they walked past a store that immediately caught Haku's eye and she walked straight for it, ignoring the protests of her blond friend. As such the blond and Sasuke followed her in the store and realized why she had walked in._

"_Why am I not surprised Haku-chan?" Naruto said playfully. Haku just smiled widely and looked at him almost like a child._

"_Oh come on, you should get one too! Oh, Sasuke you should too! It could be our thing during the exams! Y'know, it would be nice for us all to have one of them." She said, her smile becoming less giddy and more genuine. Naruto just rolled his eyes playfully while Sasuke just crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow._

"_Oh? And why should I Haku-chan? Hmm?" Naruto said, trying to get a rise out of the Ice-Mistress of Konoha (Makes a lot more sense than Kurenai having the name doesn't it?) _

"_Be...Because it'll be our little team thing! To show we mean business and that we are a close team, you guys can't tell me it isn't a good idea!" She said, seriously hoping they would listen._

"_Ahaha! All right, I was going to anyway, but seeing you beg is unbelievably cute!" He said, not noticing the red tint decorating her cheeks at this remark._

"_Hn. Fine." Sasuke said with false irritation, inwardly he was pleased to share something with his friends. _

_After they left they all smiled and wondered what kind of reactions their team would get when they showed these off during the exams._

_**Flashback no Jutsu! Kai!**_

The Three Genin pulled the desired items out of their pouches before inspecting them carefully. They all put them all simultaneously and looked rather bad-ass if I do say so myself.

Naruto was wearing a crimson red hunter nin mask with 3 thick black whiskers (Imagine Kurama mode Naruto's whiskers from canon) on both cheeks on the mask and the Kanji for 'Nine' on the forehead. It also had a straight black line representing the mouth with two fangs in black coming from each edge. He smiled behind his mask as his cerulean blue eyes shone through the holes.

Haku was wearing a mask very similar to the one she wore during her time with Zabuza, only instead of the Kirigakure symbol on the forehead of the mask, there was the emblem of her clan. The waves were also icy-blue rather than red. Haku smiled at being able to wear a mask again.

Sasuke was wearing a white mask like Haku with a cat like face with the nose sticking out as you'd expect. There was a triangular shape that came from the top to the middle of the eyes in green with what looked like the **Sharingan** tomoes engraved in the centre of it. It also had a flame like pattern on either side – also in green. He smirked and let out a 'hn' thinking he looked awesome. Prideful bastard.

"All right brats! The second test of the Chunnin examinations, begins now! Now get going!" Anko's voice sounded through the loudspeaker. This made Team 7 Smile while getting ready to rock the forest.

Oh yeah, this was definitely going to be fun.

**-End-**

**I feel it necessary to say this since some people have asked me about Naruto learning Fuinjutsu, Kenjutsu and training his Fūton affinity. I'd like to say the majority of the important training will be during the training trip. So, until then he will advance, just less quickly. He still has missions and stuff y'know!**

**This... was kinda fun to write actually, despite all the damn canon I had to recite.**

**Anyway Review, Favourite, Follow etc.**

**LiamMorg. Out.**

**Ja Ne!**


	7. Three Survivors and the Forest of Death!

**I don't own Naruto... if I did Naruto wouldn't have returned from the training trip with an oversized Rasengan – a jutsu which always ended fights anyway – and a method of disabling Genjutsu he never even (successfully) used. I mean seriously, what was he doing those years?**

**So, this chapter will cover the appearance of one of biggest – and most annoying, if I do say so myself – Naruto villains in the series. If you don't know who I'm talking about... well, you should. Like I said last time many wont appreciate what I'm going to do about the cursed seal.**

**Also I completely overlooked Haku's age. She is 15 in canon when Naruto was 12. Therefore, I have made her 13 at the time of meeting and everyone is a year older than they were during canon. My reasoning for this is the extended period before the Chunnin exams in my story. So in other words, Haku is now 14 while the rookies are 13.**

**Chapter 7: The Three Survivors and the Forest of Death!**

**-Start-**

"Let's get to it!" Naruto shouted from behind his mask, which didn't muffle his voice as much as you'd expect considering it had no mouth hole.

Team 7 blurred into the forest, as did the other teams at their own gates. They quickly entering the tree lines as soon as the gates swung open. Team 7 took to the trees in a tactical formation.

Naruto was in the very front. This was due to his **D****ō****ton** speciality along with his ability to mass-produce clones making getting past him a rather troublesome exercise. He also had a near inexhaustible amount of chakra, making him a bit of a powerhouse.

Sasuke was in the middle. This was due to his proficiency with **Raiton **and **Katon** Ninjutsu, along with the fact that his **Sharingan** allowed him to throw ninja tools with the utmost accuracy. He was also able to jump into the fray should he be needed at this position and he wasn't too shabby in Taijutsu.

Haku was in the very back. This was due to her near unbeatable accuracy when it came to her senbon, being able to quickly kill or put her targets to sleep. Her **Suiton** ability didn't hurt either, as water wasn't hard to manipulate at long ranges. Her bloodline also made her very efficient at self defence, so she had the scroll to help defend it as well as she could.

All in all they were a very efficient team right now. Naruto's improvements, Haku's skill and experience and Sasuke's prodigal ability making them a well oiled machine now that they were working together as one.

They eventually came to a stop in a seemingly normal clearing. Naruto turned around to face his two teammates who were about to question him when he held up his hand to stop them before speaking himself.

"This should be far enough, time to start the plan." He said calmly. His teammates nodded at this, now understanding why they'd stopped. Naruto held up a familiar hand sign before whispering.

"**Kage Bushin no Jutsu (I shouldn't need to say what this is, but I will; Shadow Clone Jutsu)."** He said, causing 20 clones to appear before him as he looked them over.

He noticed them automatically getting into the formation he'd planned in his mind; 20 clones, in 10 teams of 2. This was to ensure they could perform their duties the best way possible.

If they encountered a team one clone could dispel while the other holds them off, or they could both engage and if the team proved troublesome they could still keep them busy a little longer. The last option would be for one to dispel while the other kept an eye on the team for important developments.

Naruto thought it was a brilliant plan. If a little simplistic it would still get the job done in the arguably best way possible. He smiled before speaking.

"Well, it looks like you guys already know what I was going to say, so get going!" He said, causing the clones to move before he shouted again. "Oh, and try not to dispel all at once, I would prefer not to get a headache before I even start fighting!"

With this said, all the clones disappeared from the clearing they were in, leaving Team 7 alone. They were all rather calm, despite the circumstances. If any enemies were nearby, the clones would find them. They didn't have much to worry about for the moment.

"Alright then... Haku-chan, can you detect any water flowing nearby?" Naruto asked, getting a look of concentration from the black-haired beauty.

After a minute of a slightly awkward silence, the girl finally answered. "Yes, I can sense some water nearby moving westwards. I can only assume this is where the river is." She said confidently. Sasuke nodded and decided to speak up.

"Then we may as well get moving right? No use sticking around here all day, we may even be able to get some food at the river." He said. A slight growl emerged from his stomach, earning a chuckle from Naruto before he nodded and they took off again.

They jumped up into the tree line again before they all got a little bored and decided to engage in some casual conversation. Or at least that was what it was intended to be.

"We haven't really seen much of anything so far, have we? It's weird, no animals, no weird man-eating plants... just silence. Not to mention your clones haven't found anything of note yet." Sasuke said. He still wasn't good at 'casual'.

Naruto furrowed his brows. "You have a point. It seems odd, but perhaps all the dangerous species moved to a more promising area. All animals care about is getting a meal and living. If there was nothing to eat here, maybe they just cleared out." Naruto said, earning a slight nod from the Uchiha.

"I suppose you could be right, still doesn't make me feel any better though. This place is creeping me out, with the trees blocking the majority of the sunlight it's gloomy too." The Uchiha replied. Haku just let out a small laugh at this.

"What, the great Uchiha is afraid of a little shadow? I didn't think you were like that Sasuke. You should try living in Kiri, I hear it's always misty there." She said, earning a slight huff from the almighty Uchiha heir. Naruto just smiled and winked at her for the jab, earning a hidden blush and nod in return.

After a small bout of silence the conversation started anew. Naruto was the one to initiate it, since he still wasn't a fan of peaceful silence. That likely wouldn't change any time soon.

"So Haku-chan, you've been in the Leaf Village for a long while now. Any thoughts you'd like to share, from an outside standpoint?" He said, interested in how his village compared to others that she'd spent time in prior to know.

"Well, to be fair, other than where I grew up I didn't spend any considerable time in a specific place. Not that I had time to enjoy it like I do now anyway." She said, a small frown on her face. Since Zabuza had died she couldn't deny her life was better, she still cared for the man and likely always would, but now she had her own life; her own dreams. She was a tool no longer.

"However, if I had to say something it's that the village is... well, perfect really. I can't find any faults with it. It's warm, it's cheery, the people are nice... in most circumstances and the ninja are well taught. Though the academy seems a little too easy on the younger children. It's a great place to be." She said with a genuine smile, having voiced her thoughts on her new home. She hadn't really thought about it until recently, and it was a great place no doubt.

"That's great to hear Haku-chan. I'm really glad you're happy here." Naruto said with his eyes closed and a warm smile on his face, not that the girl could see it. Sasuke simply rolled his eyes. The village was good, he got it.

"Yeah, yeah whatever. It's good to know you aren't miserable Haku. I think we're almost at the river, any clones dispel yet?" Sasuke said, earning a shake of the head from the blond.

"Surprisingly not. I'm getting a little tense about it, it seems wrong. I'm not the fastest guy, but we've been in this forest a little while now and I sent 10 teams of clones. No way every team could avoid them all." He said, earning nods from both his teammates. Something was amiss.

"Well, luckily for us – or maybe unluckily – we still have another four days in addition to today, so we have plenty of time still. If we can't find anything by tomorrow or the day after we'll do it ourselves." Haku said, trying to ease her teammates nerves a little. Naruto just agreed while Sasuke grunted. He would prefer to be lounging around in this 'tower'.

"Dammit. Fine..."

"What should we do if we run into other Konoha teams or your friends from the academy?" Haku said. Naruto pondered this for a moment before replying.

"Well, we should just try to knock them out, or get them to surrender. I'm not exactly planning to go around killing the other teams, but it may be necessary. Don't kill any of the Rookies, I don't want to have to deal with that crap..." Naruto said, a little irritated. In a perfect world he'd just be able to knock people out by thinking about it. 'A perfect world... that sounds nice.' He thought idly.

"That's enough chatting for now, let's get a move on to the river." Sasuke said, authoritatively. Naruto stifled a laugh at this, the Uchiha couldn't exactly order them around, their team was for all intents and purposes a democracy. They all decided what happened, so there wasn't really a leader. Though the blond couldn't help but notice most decisions ended at him. 'I must be a reliable person to get Sasuke to look to me for guidance.' He thought with a smile.

**-A Little While Later, at the River-**

The three arrived at the river to find it was a rather tranquil scene. The trees became more scarce as you approached, as it was rather rocky near it. However, the sun shining down through the gap created by said lack of trees and the sparkling waters of the river more than made up for this.

"I think we could find worse places to hang out in here, right guys?" Naruto said, earning nods from his teammates. He took off his mask and shook his head a little to un-flatten his fringe and the sections of hair the strap holding the mask went over. He then walked over to the water before sitting down and drinking a little of it before smiling.

"Hmm, the water is nice. Seems quite clean too. Yeah, this was a good decision." He said, laying on his back with his hands behind his head and his eyes closed, a smile gracing his features. He couldn't help but feel at peace here.

"Now what's the point of the masks if you take it off the first chance you get Naruto-kun?" Haku said with a mock pout, before taking hers off as well and walking to sit next to the blond. He simply smiled up at her, having opened his eyes when she spoke and sat up.

"Looks like you were right Sasuke, there is something to eat here." He said, pointing at the river, where a few fish could be seen swimming in all directions. Sasuke smiled at this before turning to the two.

"Anyone want to help me catch some? I could just electrify the water, but I get the idea that wouldn't be the best plan." He said with a smirk. Naruto just chuckled before standing and creating a few clones who proceeded to pull out kunai. He stopped them when a hand touched his shoulder.

"I think _I _am best suited for this." She said smiling, pulling out a few senbon before launching them into the water and skewering about 4 fish. Naruto just pouted at being shown up before walking across the water the grab the fish that floated to the surface.

"Not cool Haku-chan." He said with a small smile. She winked at him before talking.

"Well, if you want to feel useful you could always gather some wood for a fire and Sasuke can light it." She said playfully. Sasuke just sweat-dropped at being ordered around and Naruto smiled before running off.

After a few minutes of gathering wood the blond was making his way back when his mind suddenly felt like it'd burst into flames.

"ARGHHH!" He shouted in pain, clutching his head and falling to his knees. He could _feel _things everywhere in the forest, the unknown and strange feeling burning his mind with its sudden and powerful appearance.

"_**Well that's interesting..." **_The Kyūbi said, a little intrigued at the little development. Naruto continued to clutch his head in pain as he replied.

"_What is?! What the hell is this?!"_ He inwardly shouted at the fox, hoping for a quick explanation. The giant fox snarled at his tone before answering.

"_**It's a little difficult to explain, so it may be hard to understand. Something has occurred with my access to your senses along with me allowing you a portion of my power." **_The fox replied cryptically. The blond groaned and slowly released his head as the pain started to recede.

"_I didn't ask for a riddle!" _He said, annoyed at the way the fox explained itself. It simply huffed and continued.

"_**It seems as though my access to your senses along with your access to my power have created a strange type of sensory ability. Your ability to harness my hate filled chakra, combined with my access to your senses have caused your mind to become acclimated to hateful emotions. The best name I can come up with is 'Negative Emotions Sensing'" **_The fox explained, earning a slight groan and a nod from the blond.

"_So you're saying I just gained the ability to sense negative emotions? The unlocking of which overloaded my senses, causing the pain I just experienced?"_The blond asked, not entirely believing the age-old construct.

"**_More or less. Now then, if that is all mortal I am going back to sleep. Try not to die. Or do, I don't care either way."_** It finished, before Naruto was left alone in his mind. He couldn't help but smile at this new development. Negative Emotions Sensing sounded like a useful ability.

"This is so cool! Too bad I have no idea how to turn it off though, the disgusting aura of negative emotions in this forest is making my skin crawl." Naruto said to himself,. He was sure that there was one large mass of negativity originating from a single place and gradually moving around, as if hunting for something. 'I'll worry about that later...' He thought.

He picked up the wood that he'd dropped in his momentary experience of pain and began to trek back to the river. He frowned, wondering how he'd explain this to Sasuke. Haku knew his secret, but to explain it to Sasuke... maybe he could use his clan as a clever lie; pretend that it was a familial trait. Then again, two bloodline specific powers would seem awfully suspicious.

"Damn, maybe I'll just tell Haku for now. The other option is to explain to Sasuke about the Kyūbi, but I'd prefer to explain that outside a survival test, if possible."

After a few minutes of silence as he walked through the forest and back to the river, Naruto tried attuning his newfound ability. He focused on the area in front of him and was able to find one small mass of hatred. He could only assume this was Sasuke, who most likely still wanted that 'certain person' killed. Haku seemed to radiate the opposite, which he found odd since he wasn't attuned to positive emotions.

"_**Maybe the mixture of both our chakra's in your senses gives both. When you intentionally focus your ability you are using your own chakra. It's possible that it will consume your chakra when you do so to give a complete sensory ability." **_The Kyūbi said, Naruto raised an eyebrow at this.

"_So, you're saying I passively detect negative emotions because of you, but throwing my chakra into the mix will detect positive ones also?" _Naruto said, earning a snort from the fox.

"_**Yes, but that wont help you much. Unless you are actively looking for a peaceful shinobi or a civilian the positive aspect of this is more or less useless." **_The eternal fox spoke, earning a nod from the blond. 'Still, useful if I ever need to find my friends.' Naruto thought.

Naruto finally arrived back at the river to find Sasuke laying on the ground, his mask turned the wrong way so his eyes were protected from the sun's rays while Haku was moving the water around with her chakra, likely out of boredom more than anything else. Naruto smiled and walked up behind the girl.

"BOO!" He bellowed from behind her, causing her to slip a little into the water and turn around with a startled expression which eventually settled into annoyance.

"Don't do that!" She shouted at his, causing Sasuke to lift his mask from his face – woken from his little nap – and stand to his feet. He stretched out a little while opening his right eye to look at the blond before activating his **Sharingan **and furrowing his brows.

"Did something happen while you were gone? Your chakra looks a little different. It's small but definitely there." Sasuke said, earning an internal curse from the blond. 'Damn those eyes, who knew they could be so annoying.' He thought, earning a snort from within his mind. Apparently the fox agreed.

"Nothing important, I feel the same." He said with a straight face. This caused Sasuke's glance to become studious for a moment before he relented and took the wood from the blond, setting it down in a campfire and lighting it with a minor fire nature manipulation exercise. They gathered up the fish and let them cook over it while just staying silent.

Naruto stood up after finishing his meal and walked over to Haku. "Hey, Haku-chan." He said questioningly, earning a neutral look from the girl. "Can you come with me for a sec? I need to talk to you about... something." He said, earning a small blush from the girl before she nodded and hurried after him.

'This couldn't be about what I think it is, right?' She thought to herself while she fiddled with her fingers. She wasn't as oblivious as the blond, she wasn't far off but she wasn't quite there either. She had managed to come to terms with her growing affection for the blond and deduced it was a romantic attraction. She stayed quiet about it in a mixture of fear and curiosity about whether or not he would say something about it first.

They finally came to a stop about 2 minutes later, in a small clearing while the blond turned to face her before speaking. "I have apparently awakened a weird sensory ability. It's related to the Kyūbi so I can't explain it to Sasuke yet." He said. The girl nodded but was inwardly disappointed that was what he needed to talk about.

"I see. What is it exactly, and how did the fox have anything to do with it?" She asked passively. Naruto just sighed before answering.

"It's a little confusing. The fox called it 'Negative Emotions Sensing'. Apparently, his access to my senses along with my access to his chakra has attuned my senses to negative emotions, allowing me to literally sense them. I have no idea what my range is but it seemed pretty large when it activated." He explained, as detailed as he possibly could. The girl raised her eyebrows at this, it was a very unusual ability.

"Well that is a little confusing, but I can see the usefulness of it. Any hostility an incoming force is generating will naturally be picked up by this ability, rendering a malicious ambush almost impossible." She said, realizing the implications of this ability. Naruto simply smiled, the girl was quick.

"Right you are. Now then, let's get back to Sasuke before he starts to think something's up." Naruto said before turning away and waiting for the girl.

"Sure..." She said somewhat absently. Naruto picked up on this.

"Something wrong? You seem a little upset." He said softly. Haku let out a small smile at this, but it was a little forced.

"No, I'm fine Naruto-kun. Let's go." She said. 'Maybe I should just tell him...' she thought a little sadly. The blond never knew what it was to truly care for someone, having no family his whole life. He may not even realize what his feelings were.

They quickly jumped back to find Sasuke sitting on a rock looking to the sky. He saw them approach and a large grin graced his face before he spoke. "Oh, and where did you two sneak off to? I hope you weren't doing anything _**tiring**._" He said sarcastically. He – as an outside source – had noticed the closeness of the two and found it great fun to play with them.

Haku immediately turned bright red and stormed off somewhere while Naruto just raising an eyebrow before replying. "No, nothing tiring. Why'd you ask?" He said, earning an amused shake of the head from the black-haired Uchiha.

"You are so dumb Dobe." Sasuke said with a chuckle. Naruto just huffed at the jab at his intelligence and decided to call it a night.

"Whatever, I'm going to sleep." He said, forming a few shadow clones to watch over them just in case something – or someone – were to stumble across them.

**-The Next Day-**

Naruto awoke with a slight sigh. He'd actually slept marvellously, despite their current situation. He was unsure why until he felt something against his side. He looked over to see Haku had apparently rolled away from her sleeping spot to his side – not that they were that far apart – and had curled into him. He blushed rather intensively at this, not knowing how to react in the current situation. He strangely couldn't bring himself to break the rather intimate setting he found himself immersed in.

He found himself subconsciously looking at the black-haired beauty. Since coming to the leaf village she had begun to put her hair into a similar fashion to the way she did it in Wave when they'd met in the forest. The difference being the two long locks of hair that usually framed her face were shorter, reaching her shoulders rather than her mid-chest.

Her skin had gained a more healthy appearance since arriving in the Leaf Villages warmer climate, now less pale and more fitting of her appearance. She had in her training gained an even more female figure and her chest had begun to develop to a noticeable standard, making her even more endearing.

Then his mind drifted to her more mental traits. She was a kind and warm individual, not above showing worry or care for those close to her. She was also quite quick-witted and intelligent, no doubt gained from her years as a missing nin's associate. Her personality was generally just another attractive feature in her almost perfect repertoire. She was a pretty perfect person.

The blond was so mesmerised by her beauty he was blatantly just staring at her face, not caring in the slightest about the rest of the world. He slowly raised his left hand and brushed it gently across her cheek, earning a small purr in return. The blond smiled heartily at the reaction he got and couldn't help but be happy that it pleased her. He continued this for a little while as thoughts began to form within his psyche.

'What is this feeling you inspire within me Haku-chan? This content; this feeling of warmth that seems so alien to me. How are you doing this without even trying?' He thought, though he was far happier than the thoughts would've let on. 'It's as if I don't need anything when you are near. As if I am complete.'

He was cut out of his musings when her eyes began to flutter open and closed to adjust to the intensity of the sunlight along with the fact she had to realize where she was. Fortunately Naruto had stop his ministrations by the time she woke or things would've been _REALLY_ awkward. She looked up to see her head was on Naruto's chest with him smiling down at her. She reacted about as well as you'd expect.

She produced a loud 'EEP' noise before jumping back slightly in embarrassment, her cheeks bright red again, a seemingly common occurrence for her these days. Naruto just continued to smile as he sat up to address the girl.

"Aww, am I really that bad? I don't have fleas, honest!" He said jokingly, causing the girl to giggle somewhat before standing up. She was unsure how... _that_... happened.

"Uh... why was I...um... like... that? Close to you, I mean." She blurted out. Naruto just smirked before gesturing over to her sleeping area, which had been evidently messed up during the night. Haku just sighed before resuming.

"Er... right. Sorry about that, guess I couldn't sleep." She said meekly. The blond just smiled warmly before standing up.

"I really didn't mind. There's no need to apologise." He said honestly. This caused the girl to look surprised before smiling and bouncing away, as though she'd just won the lottery.

Sasuke then came from behind the blond with another massive grin on his face. "So, look who finally woke up. You two must've had _fun_ last night to end up like that." He said, earning a stream of defensive comments to come from the blond at a seemingly impossible rate. Sasuke just laughed before slapping his shoulder and walking towards the water to wash up. Naruto then sighed and did the same.

After a little while, the blond's mind was assaulted by a stream of new information, causing him to rub his temples at a full days worth of memories before he smiled and thought to himself. 'Well it's about damn time! Let's see, a Genin team from Kusa. Two boys and a red-haired girl. They don't look like much, but the girl... she seems familiar.' He thought, before taking out the picture of Kushina he kept on his person. 'No way. She couldn't be...' He thought with wide eyes.

"SASUKE! HAKU! I FOUND A TEAM!" The blond bellowed to his team who were a small distance away to ensure they'd heard him. They very quickly appeared next to him with determined expressions.

"Anyone difficult?" Sasuke asked. Naruto shook his head and replied.

"They don't look like much, but we know appearances can be deceiving." He replied, getting a nod from Sasuke and Haku.

"Village?" Haku asked. Naruto thought for a second before replying.

"Kusa. Two males and a red-haired female. When we get there – if possible – keep the red-haired girl awake. I want to talk to her." He said seriously, earning mixed expression from his two teammates.

"Why? I know you love to befriend enemy Kunoichi but still..." Haku said, turning somewhat playful at the end – obviously referring to what happened between them.

"Very funny. I'll tell you why after we've subdued her team. It's... very important to me and myself alone." He said just as seriously, making his teammates nod. If Naruto was serious, listen. He wasn't serious very often.

"Alright then, which way?" Sasuke said, causing the blond to turn to him before speaking.

"A small distance west of here. Surprisingly not far." He said before thinking to himself. 'They must be pretty passive to evade my sensing. Let me test using my chakra...' He thought. After a few moments he detected them. 'Gotcha! Man, this ability is pretty damn useful.' He thought with a smile before taking off in their direction, causing his teammates to scramble after him.

**-A Little While Later-**

After a pretty short dash the members of Team 7 came to a stop in the trees a little while away from the Kusa team. Naruto simply stared directly at the red-head, completely ignoring her team. He was pretty certain now. He turned to Haku before signalling her to do her thing.

Haku smiled behind her mask – which they had re-equipped on the way over – before pulling out a few senbon. She placed two between her fingers and got ready to take down the two males of the Kusa team. When she was just about to throw them the red-haired girl suddenly snapped her head towards them.

The red-head then shouted to her teammates. "Enemies, up in the trees!" This immediately got the attention of her teammates who took a defensive formation in front of her. Naruto furrowed her brows at this, she had detected them rather easily and they were defending her like she was a key player. 'Ah, a sensor. Makes sense, if she stays back any uninvited guests won't be able to sneak up on them.'

One of her male teammates smirked and shouted. "Bet you weren't expecting a sensor were you!" This was met with two reactions. Sweat-drops from Team 7 and his other male teammate and angry growl from the red-head.

"You aren't supposed to tell them you idiot!" She shouted at him before looking back at Team 7, who had jumped out of the tree line and in formation in front of them. Naruto in front, Sasuke in the middle to the right and Haku furthest back on the left. All three of them were donning their masks, increasing the severity of their appearance.

The Kusa team began to sweat at the sight. The masks made the image of the Team far more imposing than it would've been without. Not to mention the one with the crimson red mask had bright cerulean eyes that seemed to literally penetrate them.

"Well this would've been easier if you hadn't been a sensor, but I suppose we'll have to manage. **Chuushino Raion (Gazing Lion)**, **S****unoora ****B****itto ****(Snow Rabbit)**. Take the two guys. Leave the girl awake. Try not to hurt them too bad." Naruto, or **B****enikiba ****(Crimson Fang)**, as he liked to be called while wearing the mask said.

(AN: Just in case you're a big dumb-dumb, Gazing Lion is Sasuke while Snow Rabbit is Haku.)

The enemy team continued to get more and more nervous as they heard the rather ANBU-like names they associated themselves with. Not to mention with the masks they already looked professional enough. It did wonders to have an assertive image.

"Y-yeah right! As if we'd let you win that-" One of them said, before a senbon hit him in the neck and put him in a death-like state. The other two Kusa shinobi merely gaped at this, were they even ready for this exam?

"Care to surrender?" Naruto said, the Kusa kunoichi seemed to strongly consider it while the other male was kind of an idiot.

"Ha! As if, that was a lucky shot!" He said, shooting towards Naruto who simply stood motionless, his arms crossed as his bright blue eyes burned into the girl's head. The male Kusa ninja threw a punch at the blond's face who - without even looking away from the girl - caught it and hit the boy in the face with a quick palm strike. The boy staggered back before Naruto snapped his head to him and kicked him harshly in the face, straight to unconsciousness.

The girl began to shake in fear before Naruto walked calmly towards her, fearing for her life. She quickly started to walk backwards before impacting with a tree and sliding down to a cowering position. Naruto wasn't fond of the look of terror on the rather innocent girl's face, it made him feel like a monster.

"Stay back! Don't hurt me! You can have the scroll, just stop!" She screamed. Naruto just sighed and took off his mask, revealing his rather handsome face – for his age at least – to the girl. She blushed a little at the small smile he was directing at her, his chakra imprint being burned into her mind. It was so warm and inviting.

"I apologise if I've scared you. I needed to talk to you, however." He said with a deceptively calm tone, the girl simply blinked before rising to her feet a little shakily.

"W...Why? How did you even know I'd be here?" She said, a little creeped out the blond had been looking for her. He simply let out a small chuckle at what she was implying. He smiled once more before replying.

"Don't worry I wasn't looking for you the whole time or anything, one of my clones found you while looking for potential enemy teams and I felt I needed to speak to you. Regarding a certain... sensitive issue." He said seriously.

She just sighed at the way the blond was speaking to her, like she was weak. She was, obviously. That didn't mean she had to like it though. "And that issue would be?" She asked with squinted eyes.

"Do you belong to any clans?" He asked. The girl blinked a bit before dropping her jaw. The blond smirked slightly, it looked like he was correct.

"How...how do you know about that? My clan was destroyed ages ago! Nobody even remembers them!" She all but shouted at them. Haku and Sasuke were in the loop about Naruto's behaviour now. 'Ah yes, it did say the Uzumaki clan were almost always red-heads. Still, why isn't Naruto-kun?' Haku thought to herself.

"If you are referring to the Uzumaki clan – which I am pretty sure you are – then the reason I know about that is because of my name. I am Naruto Uzumaki, nice to meet you." He said with a large smile. The girl was lost for words, this boy; this _blond_ was a member of her extinct clan?!

"B..but... your... your hair! It's not red!" She said, earning a sigh from the blond, this was going to be a regular thing wasn't it?

"Yes, I am aware my hair is not red. No, I don't know why it isn't red and I can assure you I am a proven Uzumaki. If you don't believe me then this is my mother, Kushina Uzumaki." He said, taking out a picture of his mother and showing it to the girl.

"S...so you and I are... family?" She said, her voice breaking before a happy smile emerged on the blond's face before he slightly inclined his head. This was met with a slightly unexpected reaction, the girl all but tackled him and began to cry.

"I have family! My clan isn't gone! I'm so relieved!" She sobbed into his shirt, while he wore an amused smile while patting her on the back. Haku was having difficulty just standing put and doing nothing. 'Must not kill red-head, must not kill red-head.' She thought to herself.

"Yes,_ we_ do. You are my family, and I am yours. Oh, on that note, you never did say your name miss...?" He said softly, causing the girl to back away from him with a heart warming smile before wiping her eyes and speaking.

"My name is Karin, Karin Uzumaki. It's nice to meet you Naruto." She said before getting a shake of the head.

"Same here Karin-chan, and please, call me Nii-san (brother)." He said, truly happy that the girl was thankful to have him as family. He thought it would be best for them to consider each other siblings, as their clan was more or less gone.

She hugged him again before speaking. "Sure thing Nii-san!" She exclaimed happily, having never had a brother nor a family since her parents died. Naruto just smiled and broke the hug before speaking.

"Alright then! Now back to business. While I am terribly sorry to do this, I believe you have a scroll for us?" He said a little solemnly. The girl sighed before pulling out a scroll labelled 'Earth' and handing it to him.

"It's fine I guess, you did beat us fair and square." She said with a small pout. Naruto smiled at this before ruffling her hair.

"Now, I can't help but notice that we live in different villages. That could be a little awkward cou-" Naruto said before getting interrupted by Karin. He raised an eyebrow before she spoke.

"That won't be a problem, since I'm gonna come here with you Nii-san! Well, if I can that is..." She said happily, before realizing that her village may not allow her to just up and go.

"Oh really? Well that'd be great! I'd love to finally have some family around." He said, before sighing and resuming. "Now while I don't exactly want to do this to you, we are still in an exam so I'll need to leave you with your team. We can talk after the exams OK? Here's my address if you need it." He said a little sadly, before writing down his address and handing it to the girl.

"It's okay, we'll be alright. We probably won't pass this part of the exam though, I'll see you around Nii-san!" She said, earning a smile and a nod, before Naruto turned to his two teammates and put his mask back on.

"See you around Nee-chan!" He said, before disappearing with his teammates.

'Finally, I have a family again...' Karin thought, before turning to her teammates and sighing. 'This will be hard to explain...'

**-With Team 7-**

After a short bout of silence Naruto spoke up. "Listen guys, I'm sorry I didn't mention why I was interested in her, it's just that..." He said before being interrupted by Haku.

"It's completely fine Naruto-kun, I understand how much family would mean to someone who's never actually had one..." She said, half happy, half sad. Happy that the boy had found some family and sad that he'd never experienced a moment of a family's love up until now. At least she had her parents for a few years.

"Yeah, same here. I had a huge family for a few years, you never had anyone. I understand why this was so important to you." Sasuke said with rare kindness. Naruto just smiled at his two teammates from behind his mask as they continued on.

"Thanks guys..."

They eventually came to a stop in another clearing. Naruto had been leading the group once again so they again looked at him to question why they'd stopped. The blond raised his hand and began to talk.

"We need a plan, we have both scrolls. We need to decide whether to head straight for the tower or whether to wait until tomorrow. Speaking of which, Sasuke. Catch!" He said, tossing Sasuke the Earth scroll.

"Oh? Shouldn't Haku have it again?" He said quizzically, earning a shake of the head from both his teammates. Haku decided to put it to rest.

"While it's true that I'm the most suited to carrying scrolls, spreading them out will benefit us in an emergency. If one person has both scrolls then we risk losing both at once." She said informatively. Sasuke just nodded, the tactics were again pretty flawless.

"Back on topic, what are your thoughts? Go now to the tower or wait?" Naruto said, wanting to get a group opinion. Haku replied first.

"The longer we wait the more desperate teams will become and the more that will attempt to ambush us near the tower." She said as though it were a simple issue.

"I agree, while waiting might cut the amount of teams still in here down a little, the other teams will become far more troublesome." Sasuke said, quoting the Nara clan.

"Then I guess we're heading to the tower?" Naruto said, earning nods. "Then let's get going I guess." He said somewhat bored. None of his other clones had burst since the first day, leaving him rather confused.

They travelled quickly – and in silence – for the next hour or so, occasionally stopping to conserve their strength. They were still in the formation they planned at the beginning, rarely breaking it despite both the blond and Haku being aware that they'd detect any incoming foes.

Suddenly, the blond felt a huge spike of malice and pure evil somewhere in front of them before feeling distortion in the air. He suddenly widened his eyes before going through hand signs.

"**Doton: Dory****ū****heki!**" The blond called out, a large wall appearing in front of him before it got slammed by a forceful wind. Sasuke simply gasped while Haku was immediately on guard.

"Looks like a wind user is around, don't lower your guard." Naruto said seriously, lowering his earth wall back into the ground to reveal what was in front of him. The trees were pulled out of the ground and in the direction the 'wind' blew. 'A strong wind like that wasn't done by just any Genin. That didn't even seem like a high ranked technique...' Naruto thought. He was pulled out of his thoughts by a massive snake, slithering through the hole in the treeline the wind created.

"Oh crap!" Naruto shouted before being swallowed up by the snake and carried off, much to the horror of his teammates. Sasuke cursed loudly while Haku froze at the implications. It was too bad a strange laughing came from the same direction the snake did.

"Kukuku, well it seems he was all talk in the first exam." A voice called out from the shadows, before a figure began to come into focus. It was a women wearing a Kusagakure headband with long black hair, a snake-like smile and an evil glint in her eyes.

'Keep calm, Naruto-kun will be fine, I'm certain.' Haku thought to herself, trying to control her emotions. She took a deep breath to steady herself before becoming focused.

"That snake, it belong to you?" Sasuke said, earning a small cackle from the woman who simply nodded.

"So what if it does? Your teammate is probably dead by now, so by the rules you have already failed this exam. Too bad I don't care about the rules..." She said suggestively, earning a gulp from Haku and some sweat to roll down Sasuke's face.

She looked thoughtful for a moment before speaking again. "Though, if by some miracle he does survive, I guess you'd like our earth scroll wouldn't you? It would go so nicely with your heaven scroll." She said, causing Sasuke to sigh. 'At least she doesn't know we have both.' He thought to himself.

She then swallowed the earth scroll she had in her pouch, earning a gasp from Sasuke and a cringe from Haku. "Well, by the end of this, one of us will have both scrolls." She said, before pulling her bottom eyelid down and giving them a painful stare.

'Oh god, her KI is stronger than Zabuza, this is ridiculous!' Sasuke thought to himself, shaking slightly while trying to control himself.

'This isn't natural, there is no way a Genin could have this kind of presence!' Haku thought to herself, more reigned in than Sasuke.

Then something they hadn't expected happened. Naruto emerged from the ground behind them with a loud grunt, obviously not having the ease he should have.

"Damn. Still haven't quite got the **Doton: Moguragkure no Jutsu (Earth Release: Hiding Like a Mole Technique.)** down." He then got to his feet and jumped to the sides of his teammates and placing a hand on both their shoulders. "Calm down you two, we can work together. She may seem tough but we can take her." He said confidently. His team didn't share his optimism however and were still slightly worried.

"Oh? Where did you come from little mouse, managed to get away from my pet did you?" She said with a sadistic smile. Naruto just rolled his eyes and replied.

"I hid underground and replaced myself with a clone on the first jutsu you used. I'm not stupid you know." He said a little irritated that the woman thought she could get him so easily.

"Clever boy. However not quite clever enough, the prey should never stand tall in the presence of a predator!" She said a little frighteningly. Naruto shook a little under her gaze but composed himself.

"Then why aren't you running?" He retorted sarcastically, earning a loud laugh from the woman.

"Oh, I like you! You will make an excellent meal!" She said, before Naruto grabbed his teammates and jumped away from the clearing. 'No way am I fighting her until these two get a grip, though they are almost over it.' He thought. He took them to a high branch and waited for them to control themselves.

The two black-haired Genin managed to compose themselves until Haku widened her eyes behind her mask and shouted. "**B****enikiba**! Behind you!" He turned at this to see a large snake rising and coming right for them. He scowled and they all jumped away from it. Haku and Sasuke then littered it with Senbon and Shuriken respectively. Naruto was mentally berating himself for his tactical retreat.

'Yeah, an earth user retreating high into the trees, that was a clever move Naruto...' He thought to himself, before the now dead snake began to move slightly and its scales tore open to reveal the Kusa kunoichi once more. 'Ew. That just isn't right.'

"You are wise to stay on guard in the face of a predator." The snake-like woman said, before becoming even more snake-like as she twisted unnaturally around a tree branch. Naruto seeing this scowled and decided to try something new.

"**Kessh****ō****: Rokkaku Shuriken! (Crystal: Hexagonal Shuriken!)"** (AN: I'm not sure why this jutsu is just 'Crystal' rather than 'Crystal Release' but just go with it, anime is anime.) He shouted, forming several hexagonal snowflake-like Shuriken before tossing them all at the woman. She used her unnatural flexibility to narrowly avoid them all before getting a very amused look in her eye.

"Well, aren't you full of surprises? I haven't seen that little power in a long time..." She said, causing Naruto to furrow his brows. 'She seems too experienced for a Genin. There is something amiss.' He thought, certain that all was not as it seemed.

"Alright I'll bite, you don't seem like you're here for the scrolls. What do you want with us?" Naruto said, causing Haku and Sasuke to focus more intently on what was being said. The woman simply smirked and released her creepy tongue before speaking with perfect clarity – something that shouldn't really be possible.

"You are a clever one, but I'm afraid my goals are none of your concern _foxy._" She said with a smile, earning a look of shock behind his mask from the blond before he growled at her.

"Enough of this! **Chuushino Raion**, **S****unoora ****B****itto**, follow me!" He shouted before quickly jumping down to ground level. The woman just smiled, thinking that her 'prey' were just going to run from her, she gave chase and found them waiting patiently at the bottom of the forest.

"Are my little rats afraid? I'm a little disappointed." She said with a smirk. "I expected better of the brother of Itachi!" She said, causing Sasuke to gasp while Naruto just sighed behind his mask. 'I guess the call-names are completely pointless then...' He thought.

"Hardly, I just needed a more suitable environment!"He said, placing his hand in the bird sign before thinking '**Doton: Dory****ū****s****ō**'. At this a few spears of stone emerged from the ground to impale the woman, who was seemingly impaled through the right lung before gasping and turning to mud.

"A Mud clone?" Haku said to herself, before she heard laughing behind her and turned to see the woman going through hand seals.

**"Kuchiyose no Jutsu! (Summoning Technique)"** She called out, causing a snake far larger than the previous ones to poof into existence. Naruto jumped away from the snake as it intended to crush them as Sasuke went through hand signs.

**"Raiton: Kangekiha"** He called out, causing a literal wave of electricity to encircle the snake, stunning it. Haku seeing this went into her own jutsu, one she'd used accidentally as a child and had forgotten about until retelling her past to Naruto.

**"Hissatsu Hyōsō! (Cetain-Kill Ice Spears)"** She shouted, causing a vast array of large ice spears – which put Naruto's earth spears to shame, by the way – emerged from the ground and impaled the snake in various places, genuinely surprising the woman.

"This is certainly a surprise, three **Kekkei Genkai's** right in front of me, it must be my birthday." She cooed out, earning snorts from Naruto and Sasuke and an intense glare from Haku. What could she do with their **Kekkei Genkai**?

"Ah, shut up would you?!" Naruto growled out, genuinely losing his cool at the passive attitude this woman was demonstrating while fighting THREE bloodline users. Powerful ones too!

"Naruto-kun calm down. She's probably doing this on purpose." Haku called to him earning a sigh and a nod.

"Alright, try this one on for size! **Doton: Doro Hōshi! (Earth Release: Mud Spore)**." He said, creating a wave of mud that rushed towards the woman before seemingly overcoming her. He directed to Sasuke who went through some hand signs of his own.

"**Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu!"** He called out, setting the wave of mud alight as it continued to flow at the woman's location. The burning sea of mud illuminated the forest for all to see, a torch in the darkness.

The flames eventually died down to show a burnt – but mostly unharmed – Kusa kunoichi standing there, her face seemingly falling off with a smile on her face. Naruto growled in anger at her continued survival, wanting to be rid of the pest so they could finally go to the tower.

"Very impressive, yesssss. You would all do nicely." She said, her voice changing to a more male tone as she spoke. This earned raised eye-brows from all the Genin. Then 'she' rubbed her hand against 'her' headband to reveal a Oto symbol in place of her previous Kusa emblem.

"Who are you? No Genin would've survived that combination technique!" Sasuke shouted in fury, infuriated at how this person was making them look like common academy students. 'She' just smiled and began to speak, now entirely using a male voice,

"My name is Orochimaru. To be honest I came to test you Sasuke, but I am surprised just how strong your two teammates are as well." He replied, earning a gasp from all of them. 'Impossible, the traitorous Sannin is in the village. Not only that, but he is after _us!_" Naruto thought, his previous confidence evaporating rather quickly.

Orochimaru ran at Naruto, his fingers burning bright purple as he used the **Gogyō Fūin (Five Elements Seal)**. He lunged at the still stunned blond only to find his hand had become rather cold. He noticed a mirror composed entirely of ice had formed in his path, while the girl inside of it. She didn't know however that the Five Elements Seal disrupted chakra and – as a result – her mirror simply shattered and she fell, wide-eyed to the ground.

Orochimaru smirked at this before knocking the girl out. He'd not anticipated her interruption but quite frankly with the blond still stunned and her unconscious his chance had come.

He turned to Sasuke before using the **Kanashibari no Jutsu (Temporary Paralysis Technique)** to immobilize was successful as Sasuke just stood still, unable to move against the powerful presence of the Sannin.

"Now now Sasuke-kun, must you struggle? I am just going to give you a gift, which will lead you to seek me out for what you truly desire: The strength to defeat Itachi!" He said before extending his neck to bite the boy, clamping his teeth down to create a seal on the boys own neck.

Well, that was the plan anyway.

Instead he felt a massive pain in his neck and let out a shout of pain before retracting his neck and finding a crystal needle embedded in it. He widened his eyes in shock before falling to the ground, dead. Sasuke just stood there amazed at what the blond had done. Said blond was not really paying attention anymore however, having run over to his unconscious teammate to check her.

Sasuke just walked over to them and sat down by Haku's side. "Nice work Naruto, you really saved my neck." He said, pausing at the unintentional pun before continuing. "How is she?" Sasuke asked getting the blonds attention.

"She should be fine, it was a simple chop to the neck that knocked her out. Give her an hour – tops." He said.

As the two conversed, neither noticed the body of Orochimaru convulsing before a large slimy figure emerged from its mouth. He smiled at the fact the blond had actually managed to almost kill him. 'I don't care if the fox makes him a dangerous host, I want him!' He thought with glee. 'I can always get Sasuke-kun later, a Jinchūriki can become quite troublesome though, so the sooner the better.'

He looked towards the two before silently extending his neck once more, before biting down on the blond, much to the two rookie males surprise. Naruto let out a scream of pain as the snake retracted from his neck, leaving a strange spiral figure there.

'Well that's one I haven't seen since testing, A cursed seal of hell. Makes sense, considering what he contains.' Orochimaru thought, he'd never had a chance to properly test this seal. It was weaker than the earth and heaven varieties but useful none-the-less. He smirked before speaking as he slowly melded with the ground.

"Oh you will make an excellent follower Naruto-kun. When you desire my power, you need but seek me out, and I will grant you it." He said creepily before a barking laugh filled the clearing and Naruto collapsed. Sasuke seethed at being fooled by the snake before trying to reign in his emotions.

'Right. I have two unconscious teammates and somehow my earth scroll is gone, that damn snake must've snagged it at some point. We aren't in good shape. What is that mark on his neck?' He said, studying the strange seal the traitorous Sannin had placed on the blond before sighing and picking his teammates up, moving them into a clearing with an open tree.

"Guess this'll do, for now. Damn, why couldn't Haku have stayed awake? I'm no good at medical crap." He said sighing. "At least she'll be awake soon... Naruto though... what's going to happen with you?" He said curiously.

He walked off to set some traps and gather resources that could be used until they were fit to move again. They'd need another earth scroll and Naruto would be out of it for an unknown amount of time so there was little they could do for the moment.

He returned not long after to see the girl was awake and trying to wake Naruto up, he sighed and walked up to her, placing a hand on her shoulder and shaking his head.

"That isn't going to work. I have no idea what is going on with him, but he won't wake up until he's ready." He said, earning a small nod and a look of fear on her face.

'Be strong Naruto-kun. Come back to us, back to me...' She thought, rubbing his cheek affectionately. Little did she know he wasn't exactly 'out of it'.

**-Naruto's Mindscape-**

Naruto awoke to find that he was in a familiar sewer setting before sighing when he remembered what had happened. 'I really need to watch my back, I should've paid closer attention to my sensory ability.' He berated to himself before he heard strange voices.

"Demon."

"Fox Brat."

"What? What the hell is this?" He said frantically, not knowing why there were voices in_ HIS _mind. He looked around as if to find someone, but nobody could be seen.

"You're filth, you should disappear."

"You took everything from us."

"S-shut up! Where are you? What do you want?!" He said, trying his hardest to stop what was happening.

"You are nothing, just a body for that fox."

"Please stop! I'll do anything, just stop please!" He cried out, tears beginning to fall as the familiar abuse came reigning back. He then heard a maniacal laugh from deep within his mind.

"**Do you want them to stop?"**

"Y-yes..." He stammered out.

"**Would you like to show them who you are?"**

"Yes." He said more confidently.

"**Do you want to make them pay?"**

"W..what?" He said.

"**Do you want them to suffer for what they've done to you?!" **This time the voice sounded close, as if it had come closer in his moment of denial.

"I... I..." He said, unable to answer the voice.

"**TAKE MY POWER AND WE'LL SHOW THEM WHAT THEY HAVE DONE!"** The voice shouted at him, before an image of Orochimaru appeared and smiled at him, causing him to clutch his head and fall to his knees.

"B...but all the work I've done to change what they think of me! My dream to be Hokage! It'll all be ruined!" He shouted back, trying to defeat the voice in his mind.

"**You deserve better than this filthy village! You could have the power to make them all pay! You must simply want it!" **The voice said. Naruto felt his defences weakening, years of pain overriding his purity.

"O...Okay." He said weakly. The voice just laughed before dissipating.

"_**Damn brat! You are MY container! You will not be a slave to that snake so long as my reputation rests on your shoulders!" **_The Kyūbi seethed. **_"I'll have to make that snake see who this mind really belongs to. Two minds are enough for this place."_** It said to itself.

"_**Damn, It'll take a while for me to rid the brat of that snake's psyche. This could be a problem..." **_It mused to itself.

Naruto meanwhile had sat on the ground of his mindscape, his arms around his knees with his head upon them. He was slightly shaking back and forth while his face showed no expression.

"The power to make them all pay..." He said aloud, to nobody in particular.

**-Back with Team 7, hours later-**

"Damn it, why is he still asleep?!" Sasuke raged, Haku sighed sadly. She was aware he hadn't awoken and it was certainly more painful for her than it was for Sasuke. Still she'd put up with it, this was his way to cope.

"For the last time Sasuke I don't know! I wasn't even awake when this happened so you know more than I do." She said calmly, causing the boy to deflate and sit down. The girl just lowered her head, she didn't want to upset the Uchiha but they needed to stay strong.

"It's getting late." He mused.

"Yeah, who's going to take first watch?" She said tiredly.

"I will, you seem unfit to do it right now." He said to her softly, she nodded before he left and she lay on the ground. She tossed and turned uncomfortably until she sighed, stood and lay against the blond, once again curling into him before falling asleep with one thought on her mind.

'He is so warm...'

A small distance away a certain Oto team was watching carefully.

"There's the Uchiha." The bandaged Genin said, earning nods from his teammates.

"Should we attack now?" The other male asked.

"No, there are likely to be traps around and I don't want to stumble into any of them because it's too damn dark to see them!" The female member said a little loudly, earning a small laugh from her teammate with the metal plates framing his face.

"Fine, we shall attack tomorrow." The bandaged boy said, leading them all to nod. "We shall defeat you tomorrow, Uchiha. Our master demands it." He said ominously.

**-End-**

**I told you many wouldn't like how I handled the Cursed Seal, now you know why. I am so getting flamed for this. This is going to end up being god-like Naruto even if I didn't want to do so, I can just tell.**

**Anyway, it was good to get this out of the way. No I didn't write the rest of the rookies perspectives nor did I write Anko's. They stayed the same, ain't worth me writing.**

**LiamMorg. Out.**

**Ja Ne!**


	8. The Darkness Within Us All

**I don't own Naruto. That is simply one defining aspect of reality, one may say it is my fate to never own Naruto. That is something that one may say cannot be altered. Another – however – would say to create their own fate. To which [of them] I agree, we will see.**

**Now here is where things get interesting. The Oto team, the cursed seal activates and the preliminaries. Get ready for some crazy stuff!**

**Oh, and I'm unsure if I've mentioned this in past, but there will not be any lemons at least until Shippuden... or maybe the training trip. Decides if I actually write the training trip. That's if I write lemons at all, definitely no lemons before then... that's kinda creepy really.**

**Chapter 8: The Darkness Within Us All**

**-Start-**

It had been half a day since the traitorous Sannin attacked, Naruto was still unconscious and radiating a putrid aura which both worried and confused Sasuke and Haku. Sasuke had set up numerous traps around their clearing in the off chance that they are attacked and Haku had been keeping an eye on the surroundings.

Haku was getting rather nervous. Occasionally she would see movement in the trees nearby, but just as quickly as she picked up on it, it would disappear. She was worried that either she was letting the stress get to her or there was truly a team watching them. She actually hoped it was the latter, at least that would mean she wasn't losing herself.

Sasuke was just plain frustrated. His friend had an unknown technique used on him which not only knocked him out but was clearly having adverse effects on his body. The disgusting and powerful aura emanating from his body was clear evidence of this. He really needed something to fight to get his frustration out before he exploded. He felt useless; he felt weak.

"How can I defeat him if I can't even protect my friends?" He thought bitterly. He then thought back on the night his life was shattered.

"_There is no value of killing the likes of you... my foolish brother... If you want to kill me... curse me! Hate me! And live a long and unsightly life... run away... run away... and cling to your pitiful life. And then, some day, when you have the same eyes as I do, come before me."_

These were the words of his most hated person in existence. The one he would kill by any means necessary. The one who ruined his life. Itachi Uchiha; The Kinslayer. Sasuke's older brother.

"It was all a ruse, wasn't it brother? A means of making me weaker so that I'd never defeat you. Having nothing but hatred corrupts the heart and leaves you on a path of self-destruction. Someone as powerful as you will require complete clarity to defeat, and I have no qualms about accepting help in taking you down. Your mind game has failed, Itachi. One day I will show you your error." Sasuke said, unknowingly doing what Itachi truly wanted. He'd figure that out in time.

Haku was up in the tree Naruto was sleeping in, high above the ground to gain a more complete view of the area. She fiddled with her fingers nervously. She was inwardly getting very irritated at the way she was acting, but she just couldn't control her emotions. She couldn't stop worrying about the lovable blond unconscious a small distance below her.

She let out a groan and placed her chin atop her fist before thinking to herself. 'He'll be fine, there is no reason to worry until something really bad happens, but I just can't stop thinking about it! Zabuza would scold me for a week for acting like this...' She sighed once more – taking a deep breath to steady herself – before resuming her surveillance.

After a few minutes of nothingness, the movement in the shadows resumed. This time she had no illusions, there were people coming. This time they weren't simply backing away after being spotted though. No, this time it looked like they meant business. She actually smiled a little at this, once they were dealt with she could rest easy.

Sasuke – who was at ground level simply resting near Naruto – heard the incoming rustling of bushes and branches and jumped to his feet, throwing his mask on before getting in a defensive stance.

After a few moments the Oto team from the first exam appeared before him and he smiled behind his mask. 'If Naruto could make such a fool out of the apparent leader of the group, I should have no issue with Haku here. She's probably waiting to ambush them.' He thought happily, finally getting to release his frustration.

"Ah, Sasuke Uchiha. We've been looking for you, you know. Our master wants you dealt with." The bandaged member of the group said, earning a snort of derision from Sasuke.

"Oh really? What does Orochimaru want with me now?" He said sarcastically before continuing. "Oh, and what the hell did he put on Naruto?!" He finished with clear annoyance.

The Oto team looked taken aback by this while the leader began to think to himself. 'It seems that he gave the blond a curse mark, what are you thinking Orochimaru-sama?'

He shrugged it off before replying. "Since you guessed it already, we serve Orochimaru. I guess he already had a crack at you guys. He asked us to take you out Uchiha, don't know why he gave blondie a curse mark though." He said, earning a growl from Sasuke.

"What is it? This curse mark?" Sasuke asked, earning a small laugh from the up until now silent members of the Oto team.

The female member decided to reply to him. "Why should we tell you? Our objective here is to take you out, not to chat." She said mockingly, earning a small chakra flare from Sasuke, causing the Oto team to step back in preparation for a fight.

"In that case, I'll just have to make you talk won't I?!" He said, grabbing an otherwise invisible metal cable before giving it a few tugs, causing it to wrap around the spiky haired male of the Oto team before placing the end of the cable in his mouth and going through hand signs.

**"Katon: Ryūka no Jutsu! (Fire Style: Dragon Fire Technique)"** He said to himself, before breathing out a large amount of fire which travelled across the line and towards the bound Oto Genin. The leader of the Oto team and the female both jumped away from the cable as the fire seemingly overcame the spiky haired member.

"ZAKU! Are you alive?" The leader shouted as the fire began to die down. It cleared to reveal a rather devastated log before the newly identified Zaku jumped into the clearing.

"Hmph! You have no faith in me Dosu. Like that could've got me." Zaku replied, showing some obvious overconfidence in his abilities.

'That was a strong technique! How dare he mock me.' Sasuke seethed. Haku meanwhile was just watching them, obviously bored as Sasuke fought the three. 'I'll jump in if he needs me, I can tell he needs to relieve some stress.' She thought to herself, pulling out some senbon and twirling them absently.

Sasuke ran towards Zaku at high speeds while the boy just smirked, holding up his arms to reveal strange tubes in the palms of his hand before shouting out.

**"Zankūha! (Decapitating Airwaves!)"** This caused a strong supersonic blast of air to eject out of the tubes and towards Sasuke, who simply dived away before continuing his charge at the boy.

He reached Zaku at such a high speed that the boy couldn't defend himself, Sasuke kicked out hard launching him into a tree before bending to the side to avoid a blow from Dosu's gauntlet. The bandaged Genin scowled at this, realising the source of his reaction. 'Curse those eyes, he won't be easy to subdue.' He thought, jumping back to avoid a quick blow to the jaw.

Zaku got shakily up off the ground having impacted the tree with significant force. "Damn it! You'll pay for that!" He said in anger as Sasuke rolled his eyes. 'Overconfident fool, that'll get him nowhere.' Sasuke thought passively.

"Are you all talk or is it just most of you?" Sasuke taunted, inwardly laughing at how easy it was to rile up the spiky haired boy. The boy simply seethed and held up his arms again before repeating his jutsu. Sasuke once again just evaded the jutsu and stood in a casual pose.

In the meantime Dosu was looking for an opening and believed the time had come. "KIN! Use them!" He shouted to her, causing a nod and smirk from the newly identified Kin.

She threw a few senbon at Sasuke, who saw them coming with ease thanks to his **Sharingan**. He noticed a little too late, however that there were actually some senbon with bells attached to them underneath the senbon he took note of. 'Crap!' He thought as the senbon with bells attached landed near him.

He started to lose his balance, being assaulted by the soundwaves created by the bells. The Oto team seemingly multiplied as if using clones before his eyes. 'Damn, they are messing with my head, it's a mixture of that gauntlet's attack and a genjutsu.' Sasuke thought, as multiple Dosu's rushed towards him.

"Easy prey." Dosu said aloud, running towards Sasuke who had fallen to his knees. He didn't, however, expect a wall of ice to appear in his way.

**"Hyōton: Koorino Kabe (Ice Release: Ice Wall)"** Haku called out before landing next to Sasuke and speaking. "You really should be more careful Sasuke. Had I been anywhere else this likely would've been the end of you." She said, half informatively and half scolding. Sasuke just grunted as he shakily rose to his feet and glared at Kin.

"Not my fault these guys use such weird weapons. Anyway, if you take the girl I'll be able to get the other two." Sasuke said, earning a shake of the head from Haku before she started walking towards Kin, while also allowing her ice wall to smash to fragments. Sasuke smiled at this. 'Clever.' He thought before going through hand signs.

"**Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu!"** He said, blowing a small ball of fire towards the broken wall of ice, melting the remnants and leaving a large puddle of water. Haku smiled at this. 'Looks like he got my plan.' She thought, while the enemy team were a little confused by the action.

"I think you missed us." Zaku said stupidly, earning a face palm from Sasuke and a small laugh from Haku while his teammates scowled. Haku merely started going through hand signs, gathering the water nearby.

"**Suiton: Mizurappa!"** She called out, building the water in her mouth before placing her hands in front of it as if playing a trumpet, before blowing out a large stream of water towards Kin. The girl simply widened her eyes at the amount of water that was coming towards her. 'She didn't use that much water!' The girl thought before getting slammed back by the water, and out of the clearing.

Sasuke just smiled while Haku stretched out and spat out a little residual water, wiping a little away from her soft lips. "There we go, now Sasuke are you just going to stand there or will all the fun be mine?" She said teasingly, earning a slight smile from Sasuke before he returned to his neutral expression and turned back towards team Dosu.

"Who's first?" He asked sarcastically. Zaku and Dosu scowled at this before Dosu jumped at Sasuke while Zaku looked towards Haku. "I'll get the girl, we can't let her get away with that." Zaku said angrily, earning a nod from Dosu.

He replied neutrally but authoritatively. "Fine, but you need to keep a level head. You always let your overconfidence get in the way." Zaku simply huffed before turning his hands towards the girl and unleashing a shockwave at her. She simply rolled her eyes while thinking to herself. 'What a one-trick wonder we have here.'

She easily avoided the attack, since she was even faster than Sasuke was, as was her speciality. She took a senbon from her pouch and threw it at the boy, who used a weak but wide shockwave to stop it in its tracks. 'Well, that's annoying.' She thought.

Dosu meanwhile was having a little difficulty getting anywhere near Sasuke. Since Naruto had identified his weapon's ability during the first test Sasuke was far too clever to let it get anywhere near him.

Sasuke threw a handful of Shuriken at the bandaged Oto Genin, all of which simply hit his gauntlet, letting off a small soundwave which slightly threw him off balance. 'God, what an annoying weapon. How doesn't it affect him anyway?' Sasuke thought himself. 'Must be wearing earplugs... or something like that.'

"Stay still would you?!" Dosu called out, losing his cool before charging Sasuke once again. This time Sasuke leaned back, allowing himself to fall to the ground before catching Dosu's arm below the gauntlet mid-fall and using his other hand to strike him in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him.

Dosu managed to get free of the boys grasp and jumped back, holding his stomach. Sasuke smiled at the effect the blow had before going through some hand signs.

**"Raijū Hashiri no Jutsu! (Lightning Beast Running Technique)"** He shouted, causing a lion shaped mass of lightning to form, tethered to his hand with a stream of electricity. Sasuke used the tether to direct the lion to attack Dosu, who was unable to dodge the speed of the beast before it crashed into him, exploding into a shower of electricity.

The bandaged boy howled in pain and his entire body was racked with a powerful electric charge and was promptly sent to unconsciousness. Sasuke smiled at this. 'I really love that jutsu.'

Haku was having a little difficulty with her foe. Ninja tools would have no effect as he would just protect himself with a small shockwave. **Suiton** techniques weren't working as he could just dissipate them with a full blast. She scowled at the boy who looked rather amused considering his last teammate was now unconscious.

"Is that all you got?! I should have just let Dosu have you while I took on the Uchiha!" He shouted, clearly taunting his own strength to the girl. She placed her hands into fists before going through hand signs.

**"Makyō Hyōshō! (Demonic Mirroring Ice Crystals!)"** She called out, causing a large dome of several ice mirrors surrounded the Oto shinobi. She smiled from behind her mask at his confused and rather intimidated expression.

"What the hell is this?" He shouted out, causing the girl to put on a fake eerie laugh. He started to sweat at the image of Haku inside every mirror with a senbon in hand.

"This is my most powerful technique. You cannot defeat it, surrender or die." She said icily. The boy simply laughed nervously before holding up both hands on either side of his and letting out another shockwave. Haku simply laughed and began to litter him with senbons.

After this continued for a little while, the boy began to get very annoyed. He was being made a fool of, and Sasuke was just watching from the outside. Zaku decided it was now or never.

"Enough of this! **Zankūkyokuha! (Extreme Decapitating Airwaves)**" He shouted out, blasting extremely powerful airwaves towards the mirrors with enough force to shatter them. Haku eyes widened as the mirrors were blown apart and she was thrown harshly back towards a tree.

Sasuke scowled at this. 'I should have just gotten involved, dammit!' He thought, before a rather oppressive and ominous force appeared from behind him. He turned to see Naruto standing to his feet surrounded by spiralling waves of black energy, the curse mark on his neck spreading around his body in the same spiral formation. What worried him most was his face.

On his face was a rather bloodthirsty smile and his eyes were narrowed, making him look like he was about to rip something to shreds. He turned to Zaku and his smile deepened, but then he turned to see Haku on the ground holding her side and his smile became a furious frown.

Zaku turned his head to see the blond walking slowly towards him with a furious expression and swallowed subconsciously at both the image and the oppressive aura he was exuding. It was at this moment that Dosu came to and looked at the blond. 'Oh crap.' He thought.

ZAKU! Get away from him! Quickly!" Dosu shouted, to no avail as Zaku regained both his composure and his overconfidence rather quickly. He smiled at the blond who was looking at him with such hatred it could make the Kyūbi pause.

"WHAT. DID. YOU. DO. TO. HAKU-CHAN?!" He shouted at the boy, who simply smiled in ignorance before replying.

"I blew her away, that's what I did! What're you going to do about it blondie?!" He taunted, making Naruto even angrier, if that were possible. Then, something strange happened. His furious expression died away and a sickening smile graced his lips.

"Then we are going to have a hell of a dance!" He shouted, before literally _vanishing_ from his spot and appearing besides Zaku, who gasped in surprise before getting one his arms grabbed and twisted before Naruto harshly smashed him in the face repeatedly with his fist before spinning him around and throwing him across the clearing.

As Zaku flew through the air, Naruto disappeared once more. He reappeared above Zaku and performed a bone-crushing axe-kick on him, sending him straight to the ground.

Dosu looked on in horror as his teammate was literally getting the life beaten out of him. Sasuke was standing mouth agape at the blond's brutality whereas Haku was on the fence about stopping the blond or backing away in fear of what he was doing.

'Naruto-kun... what happened to you?' She thought with wide-eyes. In the meantime Naruto was continuing to pick the boy apart, before he decided to try something a little new.

"**Doton: Iwa no Rekkaasha. (Earth Release: Rock Wrecker)"** He said neutrally, causing rock to form over his shoulder and gradually down his forearm, to his wrist and over his hand until it extended into a large spike of stone. He smiled down at the beaten Oto Genin and readied himself to impale the boy, before he had an idea.

"So, you must like those arms... let's fix that!" He said, stabbing his arm down and plunging the spike through the boy's shoulder. Zaku let out a howl of pain at this, while Naruto simply laughed before preparing to do the same to the other side.

He stopped however, when a familiar voice called out to him. "Naruto-kun please stop this!" Haku shouted at him, nearly in tears. He stared at her with evident confusion, the seal clouding his mind and his fury guiding his body. He couldn't comprehend that what he was doing was wrong.

"Why? He hurt you, I am merely returning the favour." He said, before she stood and shakily walked over to him before painlessly knocking Zaku out. Naruto was simply bewildered at the action. She just stared into his eyes with sadness evident in them. This simple action was enough to make Naruto take a step back and widen his eyes, the cursed seal receding back to his neck.

"You are better than this Naruto-kun. There was no need to do what you did." She said, gently giving him a hug which he then returned after a few moments. They separated rather quickly as Naruto looked over to Dosu and narrowed his eyes.

He may have calmed down outwardly but his mind was a different story. 'Unbelievable. I had no control over myself, the mark completely took over. Am I really so weak willed? Could I really be offered power and just go nuts when it comes to me... this isn't right. How will I manage with this in the future?' He then remembered something.

"You." He said, looking at Dosu who flinched under his gaze. "Put your scroll on the ground, grab you teammates and leave before I change my mind." He continued coldly. The boy just furiously nodded before placing his scroll on the ground, walking over to Zaku and picking him up before disappearing the direction Kin was washed away.

Naruto picked up the dropped scroll and saw it was an earth scroll. "I assume we still have both scrolls, right?" He said, earning a shake of the head from Sasuke.

"We lost our earth scroll at some point when we fought that damn snake." Sasuke seethed, causing Naruto to smile slightly.

"Then I guess we lucked out, they had an earth scroll." He said, causing Sasuke to let out a smirk. Naruto then snapped his head towards some bushes and glared angrily at them. "Whoever is in the bushes has 5 seconds to come out before I do the same to you." He said menacingly, causing Team 10 to scramble out of the bushes. Naruto just sighed, he'd wished nobody had seen that.

"It's just you guys... why exactly were you watching us?" Sasuke asked, causing Ino to look worriedly at Naruto before he stared back and made her look away, fear evident in her eyes. 'Dammit, I am so screwed when she blabs this to everyone.' Naruto thought to himself.

"N-no re-reason Sasuke-kun. We saw you fighting and were waiting to see what happened. We were going to help when Haku got hurt but..." She said, once again glancing at Naruto who just sighed and addressed them.

"Ino I will not harm you. I was not in the correct state of mind a minute ago. I'm fine now, honest." Naruto spoke calmly, trying to ensure the blond girl didn't do something stupid. Shikamaru decided to question the blond.

"About that, what were those weird markings on you? The ones that came from your neck." He said, earning a groan from Naruto before Sasuke spoke up.

"Apparently it's called a curse mark or something. We got into a fight yesterday and someone put it on him at the end of it. Seems like it messes with his head." He said in a bored tone, getting Naruto to just look at him with annoyance before Sasuke took off his mask. Haku had taken hers off when speaking to Naruto so she didn't need to.

Naruto decided to cut their little meeting short. "Not to sound rude or anything, but this is a competitive exam and you are technically our competition. So should we really just be having a little chat?" He said in a somewhat derogatory tone. Ino scowled at this while Sasuke and Haku just shook their heads.

"No need to be so hostile Naruto-kun. Anyway, since we have both scrolls again we should start making our way to the tower again." Haku said quietly. Naruto just complied and nodded. He looked at Team 10 before addressing them.

"Right. You guys have fun, we'll see you at the tower if you pass. If we pass even..." Naruto said, whispering the last part to himself. Haku just shook her head and said goodbye to the team before they ran off.

Team 10 didn't exactly know what to think. Naruto had been a nobody in the academy, now he was using power they couldn't compare to and using it with such brutality it made their hairs stand on edge.

"This is so troublesome..."

**-On the Way to the Tower-**

Team 7 was eerily silent as they made their way towards the tower. Naruto was busy pondering how he'd react in future if the cursed seal tried to take over again, Haku was worried about him and Sasuke was angry at Orochimaru for burdening them.

_**"****Pathetic Mortal. I cannot believe you would surrender yourself to that monstrosity so easily. Just when you were beginning to earn my respect." **_A certain fox's voice said, resonating from within Naruto's mind. He simply sighed and replied.

_"I know... I can't believe how easily it got to me. It found my weakness, I guess..." _He said, before realising something._ "You are an ancient being, so you must know a fair bit. Any idea how to counter-act this seal?" _He continued, earning a snort from within his mind.

_**"****There is no easy way to remove it. It would require a seal master, and extensive knowledge on your specific seal. However, since it contains a portion of that snake's soul I can slowly insert my chakra into the seal to burn it away. I could do it quickly, but it would hurt. If you want to do it when you get to this tower just say so. I won't have MY host being some puppet." **_The fox spoke, earning a small smile from the blond.

_"You're just a big softy aren't you?"_He replied, getting a roar in return.

_**"****SILENCE MORTAL! I will not be mocked by a 13 year old fool!" **_The fox bellowed, earning a slight snort from Naruto.

_"So, back on topic... you're saying you can remove the seal?" _Naruto asked, getting what he was sure was a groan in return.

_**"****No you idiot! I said I could remove the snake's soul portion from the seal, the seal itself is like any other seal, it must be removed. If I could just break seals I would've broke out and killed you a long time ago!" **_The fox retorted, earning a look of confusion.

_"So, if you remove the soul portion, what would that do exactly?"_

_**"****It would basically make the seal usable without losing control of yourself. However I believe the soul portion regulates the seal, so if I remove it, there is a possibility that negative side effects could arise from using the seal." **_

_**"**So basically I need to choose between being a puppet and making the seal harmful to me?" He said, earning a 'yes' in return. "Well that's just great..."_ He said sarcastically before cutting the link.

_**"****That bastard cut me off! THE NERVE ON HIM!" **_The fox shouted to himself.

In the meantime, Haku was trying to find a way to initiate a conversation with the blond, but quite frankly had no idea how to approach him. She was still very worried about the seal and the effect it had on him. It clearly wasn't good for him, but would the seal give him any choice over whether he used it or not?

"Uh... Naruto-kun?" She said, getting Naruto's attention. "Are you alright? You were unconscious for a rather long time and you woke up under... strange circumstances." She said, trying not to mention what he did after he woke up.

"I... I think I'm alright. I'm sorry for worrying you Haku-chan... I didn't mean to." He said, a sad glint in his eyes behind his mask. The girl frowned sadly at this, she hadn't meant to upset him. She took a deep breath before continuing.

"It's alright Naruto-kun, you weren't yourself when you did those things, it isn't your fault that you worried me, blame Orochimaru if you are going to blame anyone." She said softly, causing Naruto to brighten up a little and smile behind his mask as they continued.

"Thank you Haku-chan. You always know what to say to me..." He said absently. The girl smiled at this, having the boy compliment her always made her heart race. She moved a little closer to him as they travelled as a sign of trust which he obviously appreciated, given his body language.

Sasuke – who was at the front of the group – merely listened in silence as the two conversed. He smiled warmly hearing the ease of which Haku cheered the blond up. 'They go so well together. If I believed in it I'd say fate brought them together... I wonder if there is someone like her for me...' He thought with slight melancholic expression.

They travelled in silence for the most part of their trip. As they got within viewing distance of the tower the sun had completely set so they could no longer see a thing. Luckily they had managed to near the river again so they went near it to refresh and rest.

**-With Naruto, Dead of Night-**

After Haku and Sasuke had drifted off to sleep Naruto had gotten back up and just sat on a large rock, gazing up into the sky, pondering life. The rock he was occupying was a little high into the air at it's peak and Naruto was sat right atop it, barely noting the beauty of the scene around him.

The water was sparkling in the moonlight; beautifully glistening as it rode forever onwards down stream to its final destination, only to repeat the exercise. The sky was dark – as expected, considering the time – but was being lit up by the unyielding stars, forever twinkling away to their hearts content. It was a cloudless night, meaning the entirety of the sky was revealed to the blond.

The sound of birds and small animals could be heard as a soft, chilly breeze blew through the forest and gave a cold embrace to any in its path. The bright lights of fireflies were dancing an intricate dance through the night, trying to add to the majestic scene the blond found himself in, completely unintentionally.

The rustling of trees and bushes could be heard faintly through the forest, the small breeze causing them to wave as if to follow the wind and never leave it. It gave such clarity to the blond, seeing the world so marvellously displayed to him on this night. It made it seem as if all was right in the world, as if no harm could come to anyone or anything.

He wondered what his future held for him, for his friends and for his clan. He'd found a member of his mostly extinct clan by pure coincidence. This made him hopeful that there were more survivors than he'd first thought.

Now that he thought about it, why didn't Karin know who he was when they met in the forest? He'd announced quite loudly in the first test that he was of the Uzumaki clan, didn't she hear him? He shrugged it off however. 'She may not have heard me, maybe she wasn't paying attention.'

His thoughts continued to rage unabated as the night dragged on. He thought about his life up until now, the hateful gestures and stares, the fearful children refusing to be around him in fear that their parents would scold them, all the instructors that had sabotaged him throughout his academy days like Mizuki.

He sighed and wiped away trace amounts of tears from his eyes. 'No wonder the damn seal was able to get to me so easily, I have some seriously repressed issues about my treatment in life. Maybe I just need to talk about it... that can wait though.' He thought to himself.

Then his thoughts became far happier and warm. His thoughts had drifted to his recent time since leaving the academy... he'd found friends, a teacher who accepted him, he'd become close to his team and Haku... Haku, the girl he'd inadvertently saved during his mission to wave country. The girl who was once little more than a tool for a bastard with a big sword.

The girl who had been able to warm his heart and ease his mind so many times since her return to the village with them, the girl who he'd speak to about anything and everything. The girl who'd share in his happiness and his pain. The girl had done and was still doing so much for him that he couldn't express his gratitude. He'd always owe the girl...

...But it was so much more than that. He felt at peace with her at his side, everything about her could make him happy. Her smile would make him smile back, her laugh would warm his heart, her occasional giggles were quick possibly the cutest thing he could remember hearing. Then there was her appearance... to him she was perfect; a beautifully perfect girl. A girl who was happy and willing to just spend time with him.

He sighed happily at the thoughts. She really was a great person. He hadn't done enough back for her really, not that she cared. That just made her all the better, she just did things for others. She didn't care if she got something in return, she just liked to help people...

Everything that had happened since wave could be attributed to her helpful tendencies. She'd convinced him to broaden his horizons; to improve as a person. She'd convinced him to get more appropriate clothing, a great idea in hindsight. She was the one who informed him of his clan... that could never be repaid. She had even been knocked out protecting him against Orochimaru, putting herself against a Sannin level shinobi just to protect him.

'What am I to you Haku-chan? Why do you go so far; do so much... just for me? I contain a demon which could ravage the village and kill thousands, I helped the man who killed Zabuza... a man who meant everything to you. What did I do to deserve such kindness?'

"Can't sleep?" Came the soft voice of the girl taking up his attention. She sat down next to him and grabbed her knees close to her chest before looking up at the sky like he had been doing, before they eased into a comfortable silence.

"Haku-chan?" Naruto said, breaking the silence.

"Yeah?" She replied, as softly as she had when she had arrived. Naruto let out a smile at how nice her voice was.

"Have I ever thanked you? For all you've done for me?" He said, slightly upset with himself for never having said anything about this before.

"W-what do you mean?" She said, a little surprised at the sudden statement. She thought about it and she couldn't help but notice that he hadn't done so, but she didn't help him for approval, but to just help out.

"I mean that I owe you for a great many things, and I feel I haven't given you anything in return... I feel selfish, you know?" He said quietly. Haku smiled a little jokingly before replying.

"You don't owe me anything, and you are hardly selfish. If not for you I would be dead, plain and simple. I would have stayed a tool without a user. That isn't a life any should live, and you saved me from it." She said looking directly into his eyes. Naruto smiled and let out a small sigh of mock annoyance.

"You know it's pretty hard to thank you for something when you turn the tables on me like this." He said playfully. She just let out a soft laugh – which he loved, by the way – and replied.

"Well, credit where credit's due Naruto-kun. I speak only the truth." She said somewhat teasingly. Naruto just laughed for a little while until she couldn't take it and joined in. They just laughed together, not caring of where they were or what had happened through the day. No, they were here for the now.

They started to quiet down after a few minutes and Naruto smiled an enthusiastic smile while looking up at the sky once more. Haku kept her eyes glued to his as she lost herself in the small oceans they contained. She bit her lip to stop herself doing something really impulsive and possibly ruining the moment.

He finally looked down to see her intensively staring at him. He blinked a few times in quick succession until she finally realised what she was doing a blushed a bright pink which only seemed to brighten in the moonlight. Seeing this only made Naruto replicate the action before turning away quickly.

He thought for a moment before speaking quickly. "What do you see in me Haku-chan?" He asked, causing her to snap her head to him in surprise.

"What?" She said somewhat dumbly.

"What did I do to earn such attention from you, what do you see in me as a person..." He asked a little sadly, hoping that her answer wouldn't sting. She however just smiled and stared into his eyes again, making sure he did the same before she answered.

"That's a stupid question Naruto-kun... I could list all day. You're nice, fun, caring, helpful, smart... as of recently..." She said playfully, earning a smile from the blond. "...but most importantly, you're here. You just talk to me, listen to me, stay with me when I need company... that's what makes you important to me Naruto-kun." She said, lightly clasping his hand and rubbing it with her thumb.

He was at a loss for words. He didn't know she was so interested in him, seeing the way she spoke of him made his heart quicken. Then he felt her grab his hand and begin to gently rub it with her thumb. He stifled the urge to sigh in bliss, as the moment just felt perfect as it was. He couldn't think of anything to say, so he just kept it simple. Grabbing her own hand back, he spoke soft and with warmth.

"Thank you, Haku-chan. That really means a lot to hear you say." He said, making the girl smile warmly as she released his hand. She once again bit her lip in vain to stop herself doing something silly... but this time she just couldn't help herself.

She leaned in close to him making his eyes widen to diner plates before giving him a soft and loving kiss on his cheek before pulling back with a pink tinge staining her face before she spoke again.

"Good night, Naruto-kun." She said quickly before running off, though one couldn't miss the content sigh escaping her lips. Naruto hadn't moved an inch from the spot he was just in, lightly brushing his check with his hand before a radiant smile grew across his face. He smiled up at the moon once more, before drifting off to a very peaceful sleep.

**-The Next Morning-**

Like many things in life, the events of the previous night had consequences. Haku was acting _very_ awkwardly around Naruto, trying to avoid him completely at times. Honestly, it didn't help that the very same blond was finding the whole ordeal very cute and adding to her embarrassment.

Sasuke – as expected – was a little out of the loop so he was rather confused why their usually quite composed female member was acting like a regular fan girl around the object of their affection. He shrugged it off however and decided it wasn't worth the mental effort.

Naruto finally managed to get near Haku without her noticing and decided to mess with her a little. "Heeeeey, Haku-chan~" He said – a little too sweetly – to the girl, causing her to turn a little rigid and look to him.

"H-Hi, Naruto-kun... i-is there something you need?" She asked nervously, causing him to smile and continue.

"No, I don't need anything. How about you? You doing okay?" He said, back to his more serious nature. He'd had his fun, the look on her face as she turned was enough. She sighed in relief that he wasn't going to question her before continuing.

"I'm okay I think... I got everything I need and we'll be out of the forest in two hours at most. I still am not a fan of how long we've been in here." She said, pouting a little after realising they'd been in the forest for like... 3 whole days, currently on the 4th. Naruto just shook his head at the girl before Sasuke walked on over.

"So, everyone ready? I want to get out of this damned forest as soon as I can." The Uchiha heir said, earning a few nods from his teammates, which made him smile before they continued. "Then let's get out of this god-forsaken forest." He finished, causing his teammates to nod once more as they started travelling towards the tower.

As they travelled Sasuke was getting a little annoyed by the obvious awkwardness in the air. He groaned before addressing his teammates. "Alright, what the hell is going on? Haku you've been acting weird all day." He said with irritation.

"Nothing! Nothing is wrong, just a little excited at being able to leave the forest." She lied, through her teeth. The Uchiha heir snorted at the lame excuse. 'Yeah right, I'M excited to leave the forest, this isn't excitement she's showing.' He thought to himself.

"Whatever... just make sure it doesn't get in the way." He said, earning a sigh from the girl. 'I am such a bad liar.' She thought to herself, before smiling when she looked back at the previous night. 'I don't care if he realises it or not, that was so romantic.'

Then her thoughts became a little more professional and she turned to address the blond. "Naruto-kun?" she said, getting his attention. "Do you think we should do some training in wind manipulation some time soon?" She asked, earning a thoughtful expression from the blond.

"I don't see why not, we both have wind affinities and neither of us really have any wind jutsu to add to the team. If even one of us learns one then our team will have all 5 natures ready to go." He said with a big grin, imagining the surprise of the other rookies when his team can all use elemental jutsu, and total all 5 affinities as a whole.

"The only problem would be the rarity of the affinity, I hear there are _very_ few people in the leaf who can actually use the wind chakra nature." Haku said professionally, earning a nod from the blond. He thought about it for a moment before speaking.

"Well we could always ask Kakashi-sensei if he knows any wind users... if he doesn't, we could always ask Jiji." He said, earning a small laugh at the name he used for the Sandaime. 'I still can't believe he gets away with that.' the girl thought to herself.

"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea. Maybe we can do that after the exams... or maybe if we get a break before the next stage." She said, earning a nod.

"Sounds good to me. For now however let's just get to that tower so I can sleep. That rock was not as comfy as one may think, it was actually kind of uncomfortable. Sounds ridiculous right?" He said sarcastically.

"Wait a minute, you actually slept on that rock? We had a sleeping area pre-prepared!" She said with disbelief. Naruto just laughed it off before continuing.

"Yeah well, I was pretty content after our little chat last night, I didn't want to move." He said softly, and with a smile. This caused Haku to blush and smile as well, while Sasuke raised an eyebrow at this. 'There is definitely something going on here... I just hope they didn't go too far, can't have them rebuilding their clans already!' He thought with a grin.

The team – surprisingly – had forgone their masks at this point. Most of the teams in the exams either knowing them directly or having already made contact with them made the whole point of the masks somewhat obsolete. That and the fact they were literally less than an hour away from the tower.

"Well I'm glad that I can make you so peaceful Naruto-kun, but you should still sleep somewhere comfortable. If you wake up all stiff and uncomfortable it can take a while to shake off." She said playfully. The blond narrowed his eyes a little and raised a single eyebrow.

"Oh? And what would you deem as comfortable Haku-chan, I don't suppose you have a suggestion, do you?" He said just as playfully, causing the girl to blush again. 'I win this round, Haku-chan.' He thought to himself.

"Get a room you two. We're almost at the tower, you can flirt all you want there." Sasuke called out from the front of the group. Naruto immediately started to laugh nervously while Haku just let out a little squeak before becoming deathly quiet.

Naruto just looked over to Haku with an amused expression and laughed harder. Haku then pouted at letting him get to her so easily. 'Damn you Naruto-kun, next time I'll make _you_ flustered.' She thought to herself, unknowing they'd each gotten into an undeclared competition.

"I see the tower!" Sasuke called out, causing any other train of thought between the other two members of Team 7 to stop. They looked ahead to see a large tower smack dab in the middle of a very large clearing.

"Well, this is bigger than I'd pictured. I wonder what all that space is used for..." Naruto wondered absently. Haku and Sasuke sweat-dropped, knowing that he'd likely jinxed them. Sasuke just sighed and led them inside.

They arrived inside to see... very little. There was a large open room with what seemed like some form of riddle on the wall. Naruto just sighed, it wasn't exactly difficult.

"Sasuke, Haku, take out your scrolls, open them and throw them on the ground." He said calmly. This caused his teammates to look at him in disbelief.

"Naruto-kun, we've been in here under 20 seconds and you already figured out what to do?" She said, scepticism clear in her voice. Naruto just chuckled at their expressions before giving a pretty confident nod, causing his teammates to just shrug their shoulders and do as he said.

After doing so there was a big poof of white smoke, causing the Genin to start coughing as it entered their lungs. As it began to clear it became apparent that there was a person within the smoke. It cleared completely to reveal Iruka Umino.

"Iruka-sensei?" Naruto said, earning a smile and nod from the man. Haku and Sasuke just smiled, it seemed they had finally finished with this part of the exam.

"Yep, looks like you three managed to pass. Though I don't know who you are miss...?" He said, looking at Haku. She just smiled warmly at him with her eyes closed before speaking.

"Haku, Haku Yuki. It's very nice to meet you Iruka-san." She said honestly, earning a smile from the man before he turned back to Naruto.

"Well it seems that someone around here knows some manners, right Naruto?" He said teasingly, which just earned a snort of laughter from the blond.

"Yeah, yeah whatever. So we passed?" He said, getting a nod. "FINALLY!" He finished, allowing himself to drop to the floor with a smile on his face. Sasuke merely shook his head while Haku smiled with amusement.

Iruka looked them over, noticing they looked rather beat up. "So, what happened to you three?" He asked calmly, before Naruto groaned and spoke.

"A lot of stuff that I wish didn't. There was an Oto team, some snakes, spending three full days in that hell hole and Orochimaru." He finished. Iruka merely dropped his jaw at the last one, they'd seen _the_ Orochimaru in the forest of death? Better yet, they lived?!

"O-Orochimaru?! How'd that happen?" Iruka basically shouted. Naruto groaned again, getting up off the floor.

"Well let's see..." He began, putting a hand to his chin while his eyes wandered to the top of their sockets. "First there was a Kusa kunoichi who could summon snakes and was awfully interested in us, then after basically wasting our time she turns out to be Orochimaru in disguise. Then she tried to bite Sasuke, I stopped her and so she bit me. Oh, and that 'bite' was actually a method of delivering this cursed seal." He finished, pointing the spiral design on his neck.

'Thank god for high collars. I don't want everyone seeing this damn thing.' Naruto thought while Iruka stared at the cursed seal for a little while.

"We need to have this sealed immediately! If what I've been told is true that seal can directly affect the mind, eventually leading to you seeking out Orochimaru for power as if it were your own desire!" Iruka declared. Naruto just stood there passively and looked and the man bored. 'I really need to tell Sasuke about the Kyūbi, this is getting ridiculous.'

"Walk with me, Iruka-sensei." He replied, walking away from his team who looked a little confused as to what the blond was doing, but they didn't follow.

"Right, you know about the fox right?" He said, getting an obvious nod in return. "Right, well basically the fox doesn't like the concept of its host being a puppet so it'll deal with the cursed seal itself." He said, as if giving the weather.

"You... you can talk to it?!" Iruka exclaimed – a little too loudly – before Naruto gave a nod and continued.

"Yep. Don't worry, it has no power from within the seal unless I let it. Oh, and before you go running to Jiji saying that it might be influencing me, I am not a fool and the seal is strong. The only way it'll get out is if I let it. Which wont happen, by the way." He said, getting a tentative nod from Iruka.

"Alright then... I'll trust you Naruto. Oh, and you all have the remainder of today and tomorrow to yourselves. Feel free to take whatever rooms you wish. There is a kitchen and training room, should you require something to do, along with a library." He said, raising his voice so all of Team 7 heard him. Naruto just smiled. 'Two days rest, that's what I'm talking about!' He thought happily.

**-In the Tower, Naruto's Room-**

Naruto was laying on the bed in the room he'd chosen in the tower. The rooms weren't anything special, just a bed and some basic furniture to spruce it up a little. Naruto – after a pretty long conversation with his tenant – was about to give the fox enough access so it could force its chakra into the cursed seal to eliminate the soul portion.

Suffice to say, after some thought was given he realised how dangerous this was for a few reasons. First, he was giving the fox access to a part of his body. This would be a pretty good opportunity for the fox to screw him over. Second, the seal could gain 'side effects' after removing the soul portion. Third, he knew this was going to hurt, regardless.

"_**Ready Mortal?" **_The fox asked. Naruto nervously nodded. The fox took this as a sign to begin.

After a few moments Naruto could feel heat bubbling in the seal. "Hey, this isn't so ba- OH MY GOD! ARGHHHH!" He said, obviously doing a mixture of a shout and scream of agony after the pain kicked in. He felt like his neck was literally being melted to the bone while he had to lay there and endure every moment of it.

"_**Stop struggling! The more you complain the longer it'll take!" **_The fox shouted, annoyed by the level of noise the blond was emitting. Naruto growled in agony as the fox told him this.

"_HOW WOULD YOU LIKE TO FEEL AS THOUGH YOU WERE MELTING TO THE BONE?!" _Naruto mentally bellowed. The fox snorted at this, while it was annoying how much noise the blond was making the pain the fox was inflicting upon his host felt sweet. _**'Revenge for all the years of captivity, Mortal!'**_ He thought happily.

As the event finally came to a close Naruto just lay still with uneven breathing, quite frankly drenched with sweat and maybe even tears. That and the fact his body still felt like it was on fire. The boy just whimpered slightly, unable to make a sound.

This was the sight that Haku came in to see. She immediately widened her eyes before dashing to see if he was alright.

"Naruto-kun! Are you alright? What happened?" She asked a bit frantically. Naruto let a small smile force its way onto his face before replying weakly.

"It's...fine... just... fixing the... seal." He said, pain racking his body with pain with each syllable. Haku frowned at this, looking him over as he was clearly in pain. She was half tempted to throw him over her shoulder and take him to see a medic, but that wouldn't be a good idea if he was in complete agony.

"Do you... need any help?" She asked. Naruto chuckled a bit before coughing. 'Yep, still the helpful girl she always is.' he thought.

"You're... good with medicines right? You helped Zabuza out... can you make anything to alleviate pain?" He asked, earning a smile and nod from the girl.

"Of course, I assume you don't want it to be solid, right?" She asked, getting a shake of the head, though stiffly. She stood up and give him a caring smile before leaving the room. 'What would I do without her...' He thought.

After getting Haku's medicine and resting for about an hour, Naruto felt good as new. Well, not quite... his neck still burned lightly, and he was a little stiff. 'That burning better not be bloody permanent.' He thought angrily.

_**'Hmph, I wish I could've made it permanent. Lucky brat, if I only had a little more access...' **_The fox thought menacingly.

"Well, I suppose I should train a little to loosen up my body before the second exam ends, never know what will happen after that!" He said aloud with a smile. Haku – who was sitting next to him – smirked and decided to join him.

**-End-**

**Well, that's a wrap. ****Again, didn't bother writing the perspectives of anyone but Team 7. Wasn't necessary.**

**Original Jutsu:**

**Dōton: Iwa no Rekkaasha (Earth Style: Rock Wrecker)**: The user form rock around their fore-arm that then extends over the wrist and hand into a sharp blade. Can be performed on both arms if necessary. This can be used to gain an edge in close quarters as it presents both a dangerous risk for the enemy along with a powerful shell around the arms, meaning that blocking is far safer. (B-Rank. Mainly offensive. Partly defensive.)

**Hyōton: Koorino Kabe (Ice Release: Ice Wall)**: Kind of self explanatory. Imagine an earth wall, made of ice. It's not hard to fathom. (B-rank. Defensive)

**Anyway, that's all for now. Review, Favourite or/and Follow. **

**LiamMorg. Out.**

**Ja Ne!**


	9. Calm Before the Storm

**I don't own Naruto. If I did I wouldn't make the boys look like girls (COUGH Haku COUGH) and the girls look like boys (COUGH Kurotsuchi COUGH). Seriously, is there any valid reason for this crap? Switch their genders (let Haku live) and everyone will be happy.**

**So, this chapter will cover the 2 days (well... half a day and a full day) prior to the preliminaries. I may have to change some things around to make the finals work. Then again Gaara will ruin it anyway, so who cares?**

**Quote of the Chapter/Day: "If one is to fall, they must first rise. Those who never rise live in the shadow of those who stand tall... and will be simply be flattened by those who fall." **

**Chapter 9: Calm Before the Storm.**

**-Start-**

"_Well, I suppose I should train a little to loosen up my body before the second exam ends, never know what will happen after that!" He said aloud with a smile. Haku – who was sitting next to him – smirked and decided to join him._

Naruto made his way – with Haku shortly behind him – to one of the training grounds in the tower. It was a rather complex establishment. It was a large room with multiple training dummies of different sizes and variety to allow usage of different Taijutsu style. It also had special seals around the room that can absorb Ninjutsu to allow the Genin to fire off whatever jutsu they wanted to without completely wrecking the tower.

Naruto noticed there was also some strange contraption to deal with earth related Ninjutsu, a crusher along with a disposal gate near the edge of the room. He smiled at this, clearly they knew what they were doing when they created this room. Then he had a thought and smiled. _'Wonder if that contraption can crush crystals.'_ He thought devilishly. Haku – noticing his smile – sweat-dropped, knowing he likely was thinking something irritating.

"I hope you aren't thinking of something too destructive Naruto-kun. I think they need this tower." Haku said with a sarcastic smirk. Naruto laughed at this before walking forward and brushing his hand over one of the training dummies before giving it a hard punch, not even causing a dent. _'Sturdy stuff... wonder where they got it? Just looks like wood to me.' _He thought with an investigative stare.

"Well I see they put a lot of effort into these facilities. I get the idea more than just Genin use this tower... the average Genin isn't even expected to use elemental jutsu." Naruto said, earning a nod from Haku as she looked around the room. That's when Sasuke decided to walk in. Naruto turned to face him, the smallest trace of hatred turning him into a torch in the darkness for Naruto's sensory power. A small burn emanated from the boy's shoulder and he grimaced while holding it.

"Damn, this is annoying." He grunted out, holding his seal. Sasuke raised an eyebrow at the action but decided not to question it as there was little he could really do about it. Maybe he could get Kakashi to check it out for him.

"So, what are you two doing in here. Usually in training rooms you train, rather than taking in the sights and stuff." Sasuke said with a smirk. Naruto just huffed with a small smile while Haku shook her head.

"Yeah yeah, excuse me for being observant." He said, before he suddenly had an epiphany. "Hey Sasuke, fancy a Taijutsu spar?" He asked curiously. Sasuke raised an eyebrow at the request. They hadn't really sparred since they had stopped 'hating' each other.

"Any reason for that?" He said, getting an affirmative nod.

"A few, actually. My style uses feints and grapples and whatnot, but I really haven't had a chance to use the feints efficiently in combat. Also, this could help improve your reaction time as well as get you some experience in dealing with feint users." He said in a rather professional way. Sasuke looked surprised but nodded nonetheless. In truth, it was a very good plan... but he had a thought.

"What if the next test involves fighting and we get paired together?" Sasuke asked, getting a smirk from Naruto while he twirled a kunai in his fingers and closed his eyes.

"We will be exclusively using Taijutsu. If we end up fighting there is still Ninjutsu, Genjutsu, ninja tools and other factors such as our **Kekkei Genkais**." Naruto said with a smile. Sasuke nodded, this all made sense. He cursed the blond for getting smart. Naruto was showing him up all the damn time.

Haku was listening to all of this intently. She was planning on training as well, but she was rather interested in this fight. If Naruto could beat Sasuke in Taijutsu things would certainly be a surprise.

"One rule though." Naruto began, getting Sasuke's attention. "No **Sharingan**. My style is kind of my own thing and honestly I think it's better if you train without it, because any improvements you make without the **Sharingan **should – in theory anyway – be doubled while using it." He finished, earning a scowl from the Raven haired Uchiha.

"You're just jealous of my eyes Dobe." He said with a huff, earning a twitch from the blond. Sasuke didn't call him that anymore, unless he was frustrated.

"No Sasuke, I'm not. In fact I'm glad we have different **Kekkei Genkai's**. It makes our team far more variable, and to be quite frank I'm pretty enamoured with my **Sh****ō****ton**." He replied.

Sasuke just sighed and ran his hand through his hair. "Fine, I guess you're right. So, are we gonna get to it or are you just gonna wimp out?" He said with a smirk. Naruto just shrugged his shoulders with his own smirk as they entered the more open-ended area of the room that was covered in the Ninjutsu absorption seals.

"Haku, you mind refereeing?" Naruto asked, getting a smile and a shake of the head from the girl before he smiled and turned back to his temporary opponent. She got in position between them in a very serious stance before turning to both of them before speaking.

"Are both fighters ready?" She said, in a very professional way. Naruto just raised an eyebrow while Sasuke ignored it.

"Hai!" They chorused at once, earning Haku to speak again.

"Alright then, 3...2...1..." She said, getting both of the male members of Team to twitch in anticipation. Sasuke was looking Naruto up and down as if trying to find weak spots while Naruto was grinning and just staring Sasuke in the eyes with determination.

"Haijime!" Shouted Haku. Surprisingly, they didn't move. Sasuke just looked at Naruto with a frown, a little disappointed he didn't rush him.

He couldn't help but let his thoughts wander to the mission to Wave. He hadn't displayed any such restraint during the mission. No, he'd done the opposite, during the fight with Haku on the bridge he was able to arrive late and have an outside advantage. If he'd just stayed outside the mirrors things could've gone their way, but he instead ran straight inside them like some sort of fool. He smirked at this, remembering when he could say without a shadow of doubt that Naruto was lesser than he was.

Naruto however, was looking at Sasuke with an even gaze. He wasn't just waiting, he was analysing everything about the boy, the way he stood, the expression upon his face, the way he held himself. He noticed the boy was clearly in a defensive stance, and a very good one at that. It was very open to movements so the user could easily shift themselves into more fitting stances, and it was rather subtle, so the average person would think they had no particular stance. All in all, Naruto was impressed, but unsurprised.

"Nice stance Sasuke, very good and not limiting your options at all. I'm impressed." He said with a smile. Sasuke slightly frowned at the blond's deduction. The whole point was to be very subtle about it, while still maintaining the advantage in a fight.

The blond's change in intellect and observation wasn't normal. No, it was obvious that the boy was simply an untrained prodigy in the academy and when Sasuke thought back he couldn't help but notice the blond had very little help during the those years... he had tried rather hard at the beginning, but gave up eventually. He wondered why the instructors would possibly try to stunt the growth of a student. Then there was the boy's treatment, it would take a fool not to notice... Sasuke thought his pranks may be the reason, but it seemed highly unlikely it would foster such malice.

"Thanks, but staring at me all day isn't going to help either of us improve is it?" Sasuke said with a smirk. Naruto just smiled at the attempt to make him rush in, but allowed it to happen for the sake of Sasuke's oh-so-important Uchiha pride.

He started walking forward, gradually increasing his speed into a jog, then a run and finally into a full on sprint, smiling all the way. Sasuke eased his stance slightly to prepare for a hard and fast attack. Naruto noticed the subtle changes and allowed himself to skid slightly before jumping into the air and over the Uchiha, landing directly behind him.

Sasuke had obvious noticed these movements as Naruto made no attempt to hide them. As the blond flew over his head he followed him intently, ensuring not to break his stance as he turned. Naruto landed directly behind Sasuke and smirked. _'I see a small hole in your stance Sasuke.'_ He thought.

Naruto ran right at Sasuke, surprising said Uchiha with the sudden change of approach. He arrived with a quick jab at Sasuke to test his defence. Sasuke, being the annoying Uchiha he is, was easily able to see and block the movement. Naruto smiled as he threw another punch, which was caught in a cross guard as Sasuke grabbed his wrist.

Naruto decided to try some feints. He thrust his knee towards the Uchiha with little actual force, which led the Raven haired boy to release his wrist and block the knee, only to find it took little to no effort to do so. He had no time to ponder this as Naruto got a quick hit on his chest with his unblocked hand. Sasuke staggered back a little and scowled at this.

"Now you see why I suggested this, right Sasuke?" Naruto said with a straight face, earning a slight huff and a nod from the Uchiha.

"I suppose this was a good idea... still doesn't mean I'm gonna let you win _Dobe_." Sasuke said, saying the last word in a very sarcastic voice. Naruto let out a small laugh at the jab, finding it amusing Sasuke believed he could anger him so easily. He simply adjusted to a more defensive stance and ushered the Uchiha to attack with the classic 'come at me' hand gesture.

Sasuke smirked and decided to indulge him, running forward with speed. Naruto let his face and mind go serious at the action, knowing full well the Uchiha was faster than he was. Sasuke quickly reached him, lunging to the side before spinning into a harsh kick. Naruto – knowing better than to block the momentum and force powering the kick – ducked under the kick and carefully pushed up against the leg, throwing Sasuke off balance. Sasuke widened his eyes at the action before he realised what had happened.

Naruto – while intending to use the action to land a blow – was rather unfazed when the Uchiha used his mind to get himself out of the situation, quickly placing a hand on the ground and pushing away from the blond. He instead just smiled at the action, as if pleased that Sasuke would not allow him to attack so easily.

"Quick thinking Sasuke, I'm impressed." He said, earning a slight huff in response.

"Whatever Naruto... still, that was clever, pushing me off balance like that. I get why you didn't want me using my **Sharingan **to copy your movements." He said with a slight grin. Naruto just nodded, happy the message was well received. "...that doesn't mean I won't try to recreate them later though." He said with a full grin, earning a scowl from the blond.

"Your style is already pretty awesome, don't go stealing my moves!" He said, rather annoyed at the statement before he realised it was a taunt, causing him to mentally slap himself at getting irritated so easily.

Haku was enjoying the fight, finding it genuinely interesting how the two heirs of powerful clans would interact during a fight. Naruto with his more deceptive and misleading style was doing well at confusing and surprising the Uchiha while Sasuke, who had a very well refined style which was equally good at offence and defence was able to come back from all the tricks Naruto used without any real issues. It was going pretty evenly so far. As she found herself doing a lot recently, she started playing with a senbon between her fingers passively.

'_This is something I wasn't expecting this morning... still, it is a nice surprise. The outcome of this fight will probably lead to one of them trying to get better than the other, thus giving both of them a reason to grow. Rivalry between friends is one of the greatest motivators there is.'_ The girl thought to herself while studying the two.

Sasuke was enjoying himself quite a lot, ever since the Wave mission the two male members of Team 7 had silently agreed to a rivalry between one and other. This was because of the way Naruto defeated Haku while Sasuke was unconscious. It bred a need to defeat the blond in something, and regardless of the outcome this fight was an opportunity in this goal.

Naruto had similar sentiments. This fight was a stepping stone for him in all his goals. He was proving his clan against another of similar power. He was testing his own power against a rival. He was using this as information to improve and grow towards his final goal, to be Hokage. Everything he had done or will ever do is for this goal, and this was a great turning point.

Sasuke ran at Naruto again, earning a raised eyebrow at the blond until he saw Sasuke's face. It was hardened in determination and excitement. _'He's really getting into this.'_ The blond thought with a smile. Sasuke arrived and threw a quick punch at the boy with his right hand, which was quickly palmed away by Naruto who retaliated with an elbow strike from his right side to the Uchiha's chest. Sasuke moved around this with strange ease before getting a quick blow into Naruto's stomach with his knee.

Naruto staggered back a little in surprise, before remembering the thing that set them apart. _'Ah yes, Sasuke was always faster than me. I need to be careful not to get into deadlocks because he can easily get around my blows and retaliate.'_ He thought with an analytical frown.

Naruto caught himself and got back into his stance. Sasuke was coming in with a high kick, lifting himself slightly off the ground as Naruto righted himself. The blond smirked, narrowly evading the kick before grabbing the offending appendage and twirling around, throwing the Uchiha heir across the room where he impacted the wall with an 'Oof!' sound as his back hit the wall harshly. Naruto's smile dimmed a little at this, he wasn't really a fan of hurting his friends, but spars were necessary.

"What? Is this dance over? The song just began!" Naruto said, taunting the Uchiha who was struggling to rise to his feet. Upon hearing the blond he gained a tick mark on his forehead and stared at the boy with annoyance.

"Dammit Dobe stop calling it dancing! It's really creeping me out!" He shouted, causing the blond to snort and turn away slightly before replying.

"Well sorry for lightening up the exercise a little." He said with a pout.

"Ah whatever." Sasuke said, having finally gotten to his feet and back into battle mode. "Let's speed up the footsteps shall we?" He said with a slightly derisive tone, causing the blond to get a little confused. 'Dammit, is he mocking me or agreeing with me, I can't tell.' He thought with a little irritation. He finally settled with staying quiet. Sasuke smirked at shutting the blond up.

Naruto ran at Sasuke in silence causing the Uchiha to get serious. He arrived to find a punch heading to his nose from the right side. He allowed himself to use this as an opening as he fell onto his left knee, extending his right leg out before placing his weight on his left hand and spinning his body counter-clockwise to spin kick the legs of Sasuke to trip him.

Unfortunately he was a little too slow in the manoeuvre as Sasuke leaped above the kick and came down with a kick upon the blonds chest. The Uzumaki wouldn't allow it however and quickly put up a cross-guard and blocked the kick, but allowing the force of the kick to send him onto his back.

Sasuke attempted to take advantage of the blond's situation but was unable to as he quickly rolled to his right before sprouting up to his feet and using his palm to strike the Uchiha's shoulder, sending him slightly off balance. It didn't do too much, but it was enough to allow the blond to get another hit in as he quickly did an uppercut to the Uchiha's stomach.

Sasuke did his best to ignore the pain and grabbed Naruto's wrist before spinning and kicking the blond in his side, releasing his wrist right before the impact so he'd feel the full momentum of it. Naruto coughed out in pain as he was sent towards the wall. He did manage to right himself in the air and got into a crouch as he skidded to a stop.

They both smiled at the events that had occurred, this was a very fun spar. They were clearly just about even, though Sasuke did seem to have the advantage. Naruto didn't care in the slightest whether he won or lost, as long as he put up a good fight. Sasuke's thoughts weren't much different.

Haku was really enjoying the battle between the two. She had never been one for Taijutsu, instead using her Senbon and speed as a replacement for Kunai and strength... this didn't, however mean that she didn't appreciate or know when a battle between Taijutsu users was taking place. It was clear both the Genin were above average in Taijutsu and thanks to their specialized styles were able to get an advantage in many situations.

She had gained her own Taijutsu style during her training sessions with Team 7 and was grateful for it, but she was certain she'd lose against both her teammates. They were both very adapted and well fit for their styles, where she was never really suited to close up fighting... hence the Senbon. Still, she couldn't help but be mesmerized by the movements of the blond. Despite his more deceptive and tricky style he did truly look like he was dancing.

Naruto was enjoying himself a little too much... he was trying to cool off a little before he started firing off jutsu at the Uchiha heir instinctively. Speaking of Sasuke, he was starting to tire; not having access to the Uzumaki reserves was a surprisingly important factor. The blond could easily win in a war of attrition. _'Damn his genes...'_ Sasuke thought, being unintentionally hypocritical as he would always talk of the Uchiha clan's greatness, and therefore their genes.

Naruto clicked his neck loudly, groaning slightly as he did it. This irritated Sasuke and slightly disgusted Haku. He smiled before speaking.

"You have no idea how long I needed to do that; My neck was really stiff." He said, half honestly and half mockingly. Sasuke just growled at the blond before getting into his stance and beckoning the Uzumaki survivor to attack.

Naruto simply smiled at the Uchiha's actions before walking forward, then suddenly kicking off into a sprint about midway to Sasuke to try and throw him off. It worked – as expected – since Sasuke widened his eyes in surprise before getting into a panicked defensive stance. Naruto appeared in front of him with a pretty menacing stare.

The blond decided to try something a little flashy, so he jumped up into a spin kick that was aimed at the Uchiha's head at a noteworthy velocity. Sasuke ducked to escape losing his head but instantly widened his eyes further as he realised his mistake. The spin kick was a feint. The blond's other leg kicked forward right into Sasuke's jaw, sending him careening back.

Naruto smiled at the success of the move before landing in a crouch, left leg extended and the right hand bent in front of his face with the left arm extended outwards just like his leg to try and strike a pose. It was rather successful, as it certainly did paint a rather 'cool' image. Haku instantly blushed and turned away while Sasuke just groaned from his place on the ground, regrettably standing to his feet.

"That _REALLY_ hurt Naruto." Sasuke said, rubbing his jaw which contained a large red, foot shaped mark. Naruto bit back a laugh at the image of the almighty Uchiha with a foot mark on his face. Haku wasn't so successful and laughed loudly at the image causing Sasuke to face-fault._ 'Damn them both, I'll get him back for that.' _

"Aww, I can't tell what's more damaged, your jaw... or your pride!" Naruto said, finally giving in to his laugh as he finished. Sasuke instantly scowled in anger and ran at the still laughing blond who managed to control himself just in time to see a fist connect with his stomach._ 'Well, that was stupid.'_ Naruto thought to himself as he held his stomach in pain. Sasuke smiled at the blond in success.

"Control your emotions _Dobe_." Sasuke said playfully, earning a chuckle and a shake of the head from Naruto, who was inwardly agreeing with Sasuke since he'd allowed himself to compromise his advantage during a fight, spar or no. He'd work on it later though.

"Yeah... whatever you say _Uchiha-sama_." Naruto replied with a false bow, earning a laugh from Sasuke. This was just their thing, to insult each other jokingly to see who could come up with the best ways of annoying the other, but it ended up just being a big joke.

"So you finally realise I'm better than you huh Naruto?" Sasuke said, earning a shake of the head from Naruto. He just looked back at the Raven haired boy and chuckled darkly. Sasuke was slightly confused by the action but decided it wasn't worth the effort to analyse.

"Whatever you say Sasuke. Let's finish this dance shall we? I hope your feet can keep up!" Naruto said, once again annoying Sasuke with his dance references. The Uchiha ignored it however as finally putting this spar to an end sounded like a pretty good idea. Not to say it would finish quickly, but a finale was welcomed.

Sasuke ran towards Naruto who did the same and they met in the middle of the room, clashing their fists together in a show of power. Sasuke was a little weaker than Naruto as the blond had the Kyūbi to boost his physique since the advances healing factor he possessed would allow his muscles to adapt to a workload a lot quicker than the average person, allowing his strength levels to increase far faster.

Naruto pushed Sasuke back who barely even lost his footing before settling back into his stance with a smirk. Naruto threw a punch at Sasuke who blocked and kicked out with his right leg, causing Naruto to step to the left before going in for a strike with his own knee. Sasuke just rolled his eyes and jumped back a little.

Naruto wouldn't give him time to breathe so he instantly jumped after him with a cocked fist, which Sasuke easily detected and blocked, with a lot more trouble than he thought he would. Sasuke decided rather than to stop his momentum himself, he'd use the momentum against his opponent. To do this, he threw Naruto's arm to the side which messed with the blond's balance allowing Sasuke to hit him in the ribs. Naruto retaliated with a quick left hook to Sasuke's shoulder.

Both of them jumped back a step with a smirk before once again trading blows. Naruto was blocking and evading Sasuke's blows while said Uchiha was redirecting Naruto's attacks and dodging those he couldn't. They were neck-and-neck, each giving the other a blow for every blow they received. Haku was entranced by the speed and precision they both displayed, having long since forgotten that she was refereeing the match.

Naruto saw a hole in Sasuke's defence and swing his left hand with great strength at Sasuke's stomach. The Uchiha spat out a little blood at the action but decided to use it to his advantage. Naruto swung his free hand at Sasuke's head, but he quickly redirected it before grabbing onto Naruto's shoulder, throwing himself over it, grabbing his other shoulder with his free hand and kicking out with both legs into the blond's back, sending him to the ground with Sasuke stood atop him.

"Do you concede?" Haku shouted to Naruto, seeing his predicament. Naruto just groaned and tapped the floor a few times to signify his surrender. Sasuke just smiled before jumping off him and placing a hand in front of his face, shutting it into a fist for dramatic effect. Haku just rolled her eyes and walked over.

While she was doing so, Sasuke offered a hand to Naruto who accepted it with a half smile... his back was going to need a nice stretch. Haku arrived a threw Sasuke's hand into the air while giving Naruto an apologetic look. The blond just smiled and shook his head while closing his eyes to signify he was fine with the loss.

"You got me Sasuke, that was a nice finisher. It really caught me off guard." Naruto said extending his arm and closed fist. Sasuke understood the gesture and fist-bumped the blond with a victorious smirk.

"Well you were pretty close Naruto, maybe you'll beat me one day." He said. To be honest he was surprised at how close it was, but to be fair he wasn't using his **Sharingan**. Still the blond deserved some credit, he came rather close to winning a few times.

"Yeah, now if you'll excuse me I think you broke my back." Naruto said, stretching in vain to try and click his back to loosen it up. Sasuke just laughed at the blond and looked a little sheepish. He did go a little overboard.

"Sorry, I got a little carried away." He said. Naruto just snorted somewhat, though it was clearly put on.

"Whatever you say Sasuke. So, anyone hungry? I can get back to training after I recover from your attempt to cripple me." Naruto said with a smirk as he began walking away. Sasuke just let out a 'Hn' as he followed after him and Haku sighed, she did actually want to get some training done but she couldn't deny just watching the two made her hungry.

**-Tower Kitchen-**

Team 7 arrived at the kitchen after a brisk walk to discover Team 10 were already there. Naruto smiled a little knowing more Rookie teams had made it through the forest of death but he was a little worried about Karin. He knew even if she didn't pass that meant nothing, but he also knew her team wasn't the strongest and they may have died within the forest. He shook said feelings off, finding them far too morbid and uncomfortable.

Shikamaru noticed them walk in and offered them a lazy smile, to which Naruto just rolled his eyes with an amused expression. Chōji then gave them a happy wave, which Naruto returned while Ino... just stared at Sasuke with hearts in her eyes, causing said Uchiha to scowl slightly.

"So I see you guys managed to get out of the forest easily enough then?" Naruto said, earning a muffled 'Yep' from Chōji as he was busy stuffing his face. The blond just sighed, the Rookies all had some sort of weird quirk.

Shikamaru then turned his gaze attentively to Naruto and Sasuke, taking in their slightly beaten appearances and narrowing his eyes. "What happened to you two? You look like you got into a bad fight, but you were here much earlier right?" He said, earning a groan from the two males of Team 7 as Naruto subconsciously rubbed his back and Sasuke nursed his jaw.

"We... got into a little... practice fight." Naruto said, earning Shikamaru to raise a single eyebrow in scepticism.

"Aren't practice fights meant to be... less serious?" He said, earning a nod from Haku while Sasuke and Naruto just huffed in denial.

"What're we going to learn if we don't give it our all?" Naruto said as if it was clear as day. Team 10 just gaped slightly at the blond's casual attitude regarding full-on sparring. Then something came to Ino's mind.

"So, who won? I bet it was Sasuke-kun, right?" She said, earning a growl from Naruto and a slight chuckle from Sasuke. Naruto just looked at him and narrowed his eyes in irritation, causing the Uchiha to laugh slightly harder.

"Yes..." Naruto said, gritting his teeth. "...The almighty Uchiha won." He finished, earning the smallest of reactions from Shikamaru, who couldn't help but notice that Sasuke took it jokingly... and Sasuke never used to joke. Ever. He had the biggest stick up the ass the lazy Nara had ever seen.

Haku sat down next to Shikamaru, resulting in him turning to the girl. "Haku right?" He said, getting a nod with slight irritation on her face. "Sorry, been a while since we met. So, are these two always so... friendly?" He asked carefully, earning a rather casual nod from the Yuki.

"Yeah, they've been getting along very well. I was surprised to hear they used to hate each other, it just doesn't seem like they have it in them. They've always been a little competitive, but never mean to each other." Haku said with a small smile. Shikamaru gaped a little a this. 'No way, the brooding king has a friend, with Naruto of all people.' He thought to himself.

"Well that's a surprise." He said, before his mind wandered to a little 'incident' in the academy. "Maybe that little kiss made them come out." Shikamaru said with a devious smirk causing Haku to literally drop her jaw.

"WHAT?!" Haku basically shouted, earning the attention of basically everyone in the room. Naruto slightly heard what Shikamaru had said and could guess what they were talking about, causing him to glare angrily at the Nara.

"You just had to tell her about that, didn't you Shikamaru?" Naruto growled out, causing the Nara to laugh nervously, while everyone else in the room – bar Haku – was a little out of the loop. Ino decided to pipe up, not that it really surprised anyone.

"What'd you say Shikamaru?" She queried. Shikamaru just sighed.

"I told her about Naruto and Sasuke's kiss during the academy." He said, instantly getting an intensive glare from both boys, a blush from Ino and a laugh from Chōji who found the whole thing pretty funny.

"It was an accident okay! How was I supposed to know someone would push me forward!" Naruto defended, earning a shrug from Shikamaru who didn't particularly care about why it happened, rather that it did.

Chōji thought it'd be fun to poke the bull – or fox, should I say – for entertainment. "I think you were so embarrassed your whisker marks disappeared!" He said, holding his stomach to laugh. Naruto just fell to the ground and held his knees with a storm cloud above him for comical effect.

"I hate you all..." He said lowly. Haku had started to blush rather intensively at the thought of the blond kissing Sasuke. Mostly because she pictured the same happening to her though. Sasuke was just looking at Shikamaru with an 'Are you serious?' face and a small twitch in his right (their left) eyebrow, Ino was basically doing what Haku was doing, but far less politely, she was almost drooling and Chōji... he was snacking.

"Enough of that, I need to eat something. Then I need someone to straighten my back, I think Sasuke tried to snap me in half." Naruto said, again rubbing his back in discomfort. Sasuke just snorted and crossed his arms, looking away.

"You shouldn't have kicked me in the face then." He retorted. Naruto just smirked.

"It's not like I damaged anything special." He replied playfully. Sasuke gained a tick-mark and grabbed him by the collar.

"What'd you say?!" He growled out, causing Naruto to laugh before raising his hands in a placating gesture. Ino just scowled that the [other] blond insulted 'Her Sasuke-kun', though she couldn't deny Naruto had gotten quite attractive himself.

"Just kidding! Now let's eat." He said, before almost literally disappearing from the spot he was in. Sasuke just sighed and ran his hand though his hair (causing Ino to swoon) while Haku just shook her head in amusement.

"He sure is something..." She whispered to herself.

**-Later That Day, Naruto's Room-**

Naruto was laying in his bed at night. He wasn't tired despite spending the day training his skills and readying himself for whatever came next. _'Thank Kami for the Uzumaki stamina.'_ He thought to himself, before he heard a growl.

"_**Forgetting someone Mortal?" **_A certain fox said from within his mindscape. Naruto just rolled his eyes at the prideful fox.

"_Oh, how could I forget my foxy companion. Thank you for the healing furball." _He said mentally with a small snicker. The fox just growled again before replying.

"_**Ungrateful Mortal. I should've just left the damn snake's soul in the seal, then you'd be sorry."**_ The fox replied menacingly. Naruto just sighed at the fox's antics... who would've thought a timeless construct of pure chakra given life and shape would be so whiny.

"_Sorry, but the nickname suits. I let you call me 'Mortal' when that applies to everyone alive." _Naruto replied to the fox who just huffed.

"_**Whatever. You haven't earned my respect, so why should I call you by your pathetic name? You'll be dead before I can blink anyway, not like it's worth learning." **_The fox said arrogantly. Naruto just seethed at the fox, who was surprisingly good at pissing him off. He quickly reigned in his anger when he realised something.

"_Kyūbi, do you have a name?" _The boy asked casually. He was surprised when he was met with complete silence. Never had he gotten silence, there were snorts, growls, roars and more... but never silence.

"_Kyūbi? There something wrong?" _He asked carefully. This time the fox did reply.

"_**Nothing is wrong Mortal." **_The fox replied plainly. Naruto just sighed, this would take some effort to get out of him... her... it.

"_So any particular reason you don't want me knowing your name?" _He replied, earning a slight snort. The fox clearly was unamused by the topic.

"_**Why should I bother telling you my name? I am the great Kyūbi! The strongest of the Bijuu! To use my name would be an insult to my power." **_It said, getting rather dramatic as it spoke of itself strangely enough.

"_Well for the time being, you only have me to speak with. Wouldn't it make you feel more comfortable to be spoken to with your actual name? Or would you prefer Furball? You may have caused me issues in my life, but that doesn't mean I want you to be miserable." _Naruto said. The fox once again stayed quiet.

"_**I see. I will tell you on one condition."**_ The fox said lowly, obviously being serious about it. Naruto was surprised to see the fox relent so easily.

"_What is the condition?" _Naruto asked neutrally. The fox took a moment of silence before speaking.

"_**You are never to mention my name to another without my permission. Fulfil that condition and I may consider using your own name, Mortal."**_ The fox said. Naruto thought about it for about half a second before replying.

"You have my word, I will not utter your name to a soul." Naruto said seriously. It was his nindō, after all.

"_**Then my name... is Kurama." **_The age old construct of chakra now identified as Kurama said. Naruto smiled at both his victory and what it represented. The fox wasn't as bad as people said, perhaps.

"_Was that so hard?" _Naruto said, earning a roar. _"Alright! No need to get mad... Thank you, Kurama." _He finished. If he'd actually entered the mindscape he'd have seen a shocked look on the fox's face.

_**'You won't be thanking me when I tell you how your parents died...'**_ Kurama thought to himself, before snarling in annoyance. **_'Bah! Why do I even care? Am I really this lonely that I'd resort to caring about this blond fool?'_** He continued.

"_**Don't thank me Mortal. It's better than Furball, that's all." **_The fox defended in vain. Naruto just laughed before replying.

"_Whatever you say Kurama. I'll need your help tomorrow, so be ready."_ The blond said, earning a snort of agreement. _"Alright then, goodnight." _He said before getting ready to go to sleep.

**-The Next Day-**

Naruto awoke rather early due to a loud shout within his mind. He groaned in both irritation and tiredness. _"Yes Kurama, what is it?" _He asked, trying to conceal his irritation.

"_**I was bored, and you said you required my help today so I woke you up." **_The age old fox replied. Naruto just groaned again and slumped onto the bed before rubbing his eyes furiously and giving himself a quick slap on his cheeks to wake himself up.

"_You need to learn when to let a guy sleep. You better not wake me up tomorrow, I'll probably need my sleep."_ Naruto said, rising from his bed before showering and putting on his regular attire. He was about to leave when he heard a knock on his door. _'Sasuke or Haku? Haku.'_ Naruto thought to himself.

He opened the door to find both of them._ 'Damn, I didn't think of that. I should really pay attention to my sensory ability.'_ He thought to himself with a small frown, before he realised they were just looking at him. He then exchanged his frown for a smile.

"Sorry, spaced out a little. What's up?" The blond said, getting a raised eyebrow from Sasuke and a shake of the head from Haku. The blond sighed before one of them spoke up.

"We were wondering if you'd like to get some breakfast and then do some training." Haku said with a smile. Naruto immediately brightened at the smile, it seemed to cleanse him of his troubles. He nodded quickly before elaborating.

"Yes to breakfast, no to training. I have a... personal project I'd like to work on." The blond said, getting looks of suspicion from his teammates. Luckily Naruto had a good game face so he was able to make them cease their attempts to dig into his skull with their eyes.

"Do tell, Naruto-kun, what this little personal project is." Haku said almost... seductively. Naruto instantly gulped at her tactics._ 'Must... ignore... tone...' _He thought to himself. He laughed a little nervously while Sasuke was just looking at Haku with crossed arms. She sighed at her failure.

"Nothing that concerns you Haku-chan. Sorry, we all have our little secrets, you'll see it soon enough." He said somewhat quickly. The girl just frowned a little before allowing a smile to return to her face.

"Fine, I guess you aren't that easy to manipulate. Let's get some breakfast." She said, walking towards the tower kitchen. Naruto just shook his head and Sasuke sighed as they walked. Why did he have to wake up so early?

After a rather uneventful breakfast Naruto managed to subtly create a shadow clone before replacing himself with it and sneaking out of the room to find a more quite location. He came across a meditation room._ 'Perfect.'_ He thought to himself. _'No Genin meditate... I don't think so anyway. Plus, it's pretty damn early.' _

He sat down and began to focus his mind, literally searching for his consciousness before transporting himself to a similar sewer-like location. He smirked upon seeing the colossal fox waiting patiently him.

"Well, we finally have a chance to talk face-to-face eh Kurama?" Naruto said aloud to the fox. It let out a small snort of amusement before replying.

"**Yes, this is far better than basically talking with a bodiless voice. If I scare you at least I can see your fear now." **The fox said, earning a slight chuckle from Naruto. **"I wasn't joking."** The fox elaborated, causing Naruto to quickly shut up. _**'Too easy Mortal.'** _

"Anyway... I was wondering if you had any idea how to activate the cursed seal?" Naruto said, causing the fox's ears to twitch a little as they picked up what he'd said. The fox smiled devilishly and brought its face very close to the bars, revealing the sheer scope of the fox.

"**Oh? And do tell why you can't do that on your own?"** The fox replied. Naruto got into a more serious stance and focused his features to show he was going to be serious.

"A few reasons, I don't want to try something that I'd regret. I also don't want to overload the seal or something like that. Lastly I have no idea how to even attempt to activate it since it reacted to my desire for power when Orochimaru's soul portion was in it." Naruto said professionally, causing a small nod from the fox.

"**Well it's good to see you won't foolishly attempt to just do the first thing that comes into your head... have you tried thinking about power?" **The fox said. Naruto nodded in response and sat down on a small pipe.

"Yes, I tried that. It didn't seem to do anything really. I thought maybe channelling chakra to it might work but I didn't want to try it without a second opinion." He replied, earning a snort of agreement from the fox.

"**Well, if want to try it I'll get ready to offset any side effects."** Kurama replied. Naruto smiled up at the fox and nodded before disappearing from the mindscape.

"_Right, ready Kurama?" _He asked, getting a quick 'yes' from the fox.

"Then here goes nothing, I guess." He said, channelling chakra steadily into his seal while in a meditative position with his eyes closed to give him complete focus. The seal gradually began to feel as though it was heating up until it went from uncomfortable to painful. The second it turned painful, it activated and spread half way across his face, down his left arm and half way down his left leg. It also covered a large percentage of his chest, not that you'd see it.

Naruto shut his eyes in pain as he adjusted to the burning sensation the cursed seal was giving off. _"Damn it Kurama! This is a permanent side effect now!" _He thought with evident annoyance. The fox actually laughed quite loudly at this.

"_**Good! Think of that as my payback for being stuck in your worthless hide!"**_ The fox replied loudly, still laughing uncontrollably. Naruto growled at the fox before a strange sensation came over him. He felt... hungry. It was strange, as though his more primal instincts were taking over. Through exertion he was able to control the instincts, but it seemed as though use of the seal would make them arise.

He forced the seal to recede before taking a deep breath and talking to his captive. _"Right, seems as though there are 2 side effects... painful burning in the neck and heightened primal instincts." _Naruto said, earning a snort.

"_**Agreed, there are no additional effects from what I can see. However that 'burning' will continue to strain your body as you use the seal. Any extensive usage will likely take you out of battle for a while."**_ Kurama replied, earning a groan from Naruto.

"_Suppose it was too much to ask for to get a free power-up wasn't it?" _Naruto replied. Kurama let out a small laugh at the blond's issues, knowing they'd only continue to amuse him in future.

"_**Nothing in your pathetically limited lives will ever be free, Mortal. Nothing worth having anyway." **_The fox said. Naruto just huffed before smiling somewhat deviously.

"_Guess that's why you don't pay rent eh Furball?" _Naruto said, instantly earning a roar of anger before he cut the link with the fox. _'Worth it.'_ Naruto thought to himself before standing to leave the room. _'Guess I have a new tool to master.'_

**-With Haku and Sasuke-**

Haku and Sasuke were still in the kitchen with their blond teammate... or at least they thought they were. 'Naruto' suddenly stood up and gave them an apologetic smile and raising his hand before speaking.

"Sorry guys, I need privacy." He said, before poofing away, leaving a bewildered Haku and Sasuke behind. Sasuke just sighed at the way Naruto was able to slip away so easily and Haku just frowned at the action. _'Does he not trust us to give him privacy?' _She thought to herself before shaking her head. _'No, that can't be it. If he didn't trust me he wouldn't have told me what he was.' _She defended... to herself.

"Well that was unexpected... _sneaky bastard._" Sasuke said, muttering the last part to himself. Haku just smiled and nodded at him.

"Yes well, Naruto-kun told me he managed to paint the Hokage monument with his bright orange jumpsuit. His stealth skills aren't really in question." She said with a smile, finding it quite fun to note good things about him. Sasuke just shook his head at her. _'She is so obvious.'_

"That he did, I was kind of a moody person back then so I took no notice of it, but looking back it was pretty funny." He said with a slight chuckle breaking through. Haku laughed lightly at the statement, finding it entertaining to think of Sasuke being all moody and depressing all the time.

"I think moody would fit you rather well _Sasuke-kun._" Haku chirped, causing Sasuke to face fault and look at the girl with a strange expression.

"Please, don't you start too... I have enough girl problems as it is..." He said with a shiver, causing Haku to giggle slightly at his suffering. She couldn't help it, it was really amusing to see him have to deal with his fangirls. Then Sasuke thought of something and looked at the girl.

"So what should we do until he gets back?" He said. Haku looked up and placed her fingers to her chin as though pondering a difficult subject. Sasuke just rolled his eyes. _'She's either over-thinking this or she's mocking me.'_ He thought to himself.

"Nothing really. It wouldn't be the best idea to get into serious training in case we need to do something difficult tomorrow. We may as well just relax for the day." She said, leaning back in her chair and closing her eyes with a content smile. Sasuke was about to agree when they heard chattering from outside the room and Sasuke turned to the door in anticipation. He was confused that he only heard one voice.

That whole ordeal was cleared right up when Team 8 entered the room with Kiba basically having a one-man conversation with his teammates just nodding occasionally. Sasuke sweat-dropped at this. _'Doesn't he realise they aren't answering any of his questions?'_ He thought to himself.

"Oh hey, if it isn't another of the Rookie teams!" Kiba exclaimed loudly, causing Sasuke to groan while Haku just forced a small smile. _'He's... excitable. Not sure that's a good thing.'_ Haku thought to herself.

"So you guys actually made it through the forest? I'm impressed. You must not be as awful as I thought." Sasuke said casually. Kiba fumed a little while Shino didn't move a muscle and Haku just rolled her eyes.

"What was that?!" Kiba shouted. Haku just sighed and looked at her teammate with a small scolding expression. Sasuke immediately crossed his arms and let out a huff at having his fun ended.

"Excuse Sasuke, he can be a little difficult at times." She said with a warm smile. Kiba and Team 8 immediately turned their attention to her and Kiba couldn't keep the interested grin off his face. He was known for being rather... open... about his acceptance of the female gender. Not that anyone would take him up on his advances, mind you.

"Oh, it's fine. So, I saw you before the first exam but I don't think I asked for your name." Kiba said with a smile that could be described as crude. Haku felt her skin crawl a little with the way he was looking at her but decided to at least stay courteous.

"Haku. Haku Yuki, nice to meet you. Your name is?" She said, earning a wink from Kiba before he replied.

"Kiba Inuzuka at your service! I'm the best Rookie there is." He said, immediately earning a snort from Sasuke who knew for a fact that fell either to Naruto or himself. Haku didn't count, since she wasn't one of the Rookie Genin from their year, but she was still technically a Rookie since she got her official rank after them.

"Whatever you say mutt. I'm pretty sure that that role falls to either myself or Naruto." He said casually, causing the Inuzuka to snort derisively. Sasuke just raised an eyebrow at the reaction he got, though he concluded Naruto was in doubt, not himself.

"Yeah right, as if that dead last could ever beat me." He said off handedly. Hinata immediately furrowed her brows at the statement. She was not one who believed Naruto to be weak, what with her obsession and all.

"Kiba you shouldn't be so rude to your comrades. We don't know how strong Naruto has gotten since the academy and we know he still has a trick up his sleeve from what he stopped Kabuto-san from saying!" She argued, causing the Inuzuka to scowl and back down. _'I miss the old Hinata...' _He thought to himself. Sasuke was rather taken aback by her confidence.

"Whatever... where is that guy anyway?" He replied causing Sasuke and Haku to look away sheepishly before Haku spoke up.

"We... uhm... don't know." She said, causing Shino to raise an eyebrow.

"You are unaware of your own teammates whereabouts?" He said stoically, as usual. Sasuke just grunted a little. Shino turned to him to see Sasuke with his feet atop a table fiddling with a Kunai in his hands.

"He said he needed privacy for a personal project and then used a clone to sneak out. We weren't planning on sneaking in and watching him, but now we have no idea where he is." Sasuke said casually, causing Hinata to pout before looking over at Haku and narrowing her eyes angrily. Haku was rather taken aback by the action. _'What'd I do to her?'_ Haku thought to herself.

"So, anything interesting happen to your team in the Forest of Death?" Kiba said, causing Sasuke to head butt the table and Haku to frown slightly. Team 8 were a little thrown off by the reaction, not expecting it from the team.

"Yeah... plenty of interesting things happened. We ran into Orochimaru of the Densetsu no Sannin (Legendary Three Ninja)." Sasuke said. This gained mixed reaction. Hinata was shocked, Shino remained stoic but raised his eyebrows quite high and Kiba had no idea who Orochimaru was.

"O-Orochimaru? The Snake Sannin?" Hinata asked, getting a nod from Sasuke. "What happened, how did you survive?" She continued, honestly believing they should by all accounts be dead.

"He was playing with us. We managed to get away by tricking him." Sasuke lied cleverly. Hinata just nodded dumbly as Shino listened intently while Kiba still had no idea what was going on, but knew better than to question it.

"To outsmart Orochimaru must not have been an easy task. Why? He was hailed as a prodigy and genius even among the other Sannin." Shino said, getting a nod from Sasuke. Thanks to the blond's clever little get away tactic early he now had a pretty good excuse.

"Yeah, Naruto is a natural trickster. He managed to trick Orochimaru with Henge'd (**Henge no Jutsu, Transformation Technique**) clones." He said, getting a nod from Shino and a small giggle from Hinata due to having the object of her affections do something as amazing as tricking a Sannin.

"Yeah yeah whatever. Naruto's still a loser." Kiba said. Sasuke and Haku looked up at him with frowns before they smiled knowingly, causing Kiba to raise his eyebrows. Then he felt a hand on his shoulder and a voice from behind him.

"Well, isn't that a little rude Kiba?" Naruto – who had just returned from his little escapade – said in a chillingly cold tone. Kiba turned around to see him giving him an equally cold stare, one eye covered by his hair while the other bore into both his head and his soul. Kiba gulped as Naruto just continued to stare at him.

Haku just smiled at the event. Clearly Naruto wasn't going to do anything, but it was rather amusing to see Kiba taken down a peg or two. Then Naruto instantly did a 180 in personality and smiled heartily before pushing his hair away from his covered eye.

"Damn Kiba, you should've seen the look on your face!" Naruto said with a chuckle, causing Kiba to push the blond's hand off his shoulder before walking over to the table and sitting down in a pout about being embarrassed.

"So Naruto-kun, how did your little project go?" Haku asked, getting a slight look from Hinata that she tried her hardest to ignore. Naruto just smirked deviously and winked at her. Hinata's glare became more heated at this.

"Oh you'll see Haku-chan, I think it went _very _well." He said, the smirk never leaving his face. Kiba raised his head from the table at this.

"So what is it? A jutsu?" The Inuzuka heir asked. Naruto just smiled at him and shook his finger playfully.

"Sorry, that's classified Kiba." He said. Kiba just scowled and placed his head back onto his arms. Sasuke just rolled his eyes and started reading a book on Lightning manipulation, knowing the blond wouldn't divulge his secret no matter what.

"_**You're really making a big fuss about this Mortal. I don't understand the point of this."**_ Kurama said, making Naruto raise his eyes almost as if to find the voice before realising who is was and replying.

"_I'm doing it for entertainment mostly. It's just more fun this way."_ He replied, making the fox grunt and cut the link.

"Whatever, let's go guys. We need to get ready for tomorrow." Kiba said to Team 8. Naruto just raised an eyebrow. _'Get ready for what? We have no idea what we're doing...' _ He thought with a sweat-drop. _'He probably said it to get out of here, crafty dog.'_

"So, what were you guys up to while I was out?" Naruto asked, getting Sasuke to lower his book enough to show his eyes, where he just stared at the blond expressionlessly.

"You're looking at it." He said plainly. Naruto just sighed at the Uchiha's inability to be fun when he was focused on something else.

"Right." Naruto said, before looking at Haku. "So, how'd you like Team 8? They're great right?" He said sarcastically, earning a small laugh from the girl.

"They were certainly... interesting. Though I'm not sure why the girl kept glaring at me." She said, getting a confused expression from Naruto, having difficulty trying to fathom Hinata being intentionally mean to another.

"You were getting glared at... by Hinata?" He said, scepticism evident in his voice. Haku just nodded and Naruto raised his eyebrows before just shrugging and giving up on the topic.

"Whatever... I have no idea what it's about." Naruto continued with clear confusion. He couldn't make sense of it, it wasn't worth the brain cells.

_**'Still clueless as ever. At least he seems to be getting pretty close to his teammate... she is certainly a fine vixen... for a Mortal at least.' **_Kurama thought to himself. He would prefer his host were to get together with Haku, as she displayed a strong female image... not like his female fellows from the academy. If the ageless Bijuu admired anything, it was strength.

"Well, let's just enjoy the remainder of today." Haku said, getting an exuberant nod from Naruto. If there was one thing a ninja didn't get much chance to do, it was relax. He sighed in contentment as he just sat back in his chair with his eyes closed.

**-Late at Night, Naruto's Room-**

The blond boy got into his room with a happy smile. It had been a really nice day, no hard work, just plain relaxation. Team 7 had generally just hung out, chatted about seemingly unimportant things along with some techniques they wanted to learn or what they thought the exam would throw at the next.

It was rare for a shinobi to get such comfort. They were always on missions, or getting ready for missions or dealing with general duties. Even as Genin, they'd get a lot of D-rank missions which would take up a pretty hefty chunk of their time. He couldn't think of the last time he actually just relaxed, took a day off or whatever.

He'd been surprised how casual Sasuke had managed to be throughout the day. He knew the Raven haired Uchiha was no longer the brooding lord of Konoha, but that didn't mean he couldn't be surprised by the boy. Still, it was nice for the three of them to get along so well.

Then his thoughts drifted to less comfortable places. He thought of Sakura, the teammate that had been injured and replaced by Haku. He felt a little guilty to be enjoying himself knowing he was partly to blame for what happened to her, he'd visited her a few times to check in, but never stayed for long as a girl in a coma wasn't exactly good company.

He sighed, this was the next step to being Hokage. The stronger he was, the better he could protect his teammates, friends and allies in the future. He swore he'd never let there be a repeat of what happened to the pink haired girl.

He changed into more comfortable clothing to sleep in. Nothing too amazing, just a plain blue shirt with the Uzumaki spiral on the back (something he ensured was on the majority of his clothing) and some black sweat pants. He clicked his neck and was about to go to sleep when his door knocked. _'Now who could that be at this hour? Hmm... I still go with Haku.' _He thought before opening the door, only to see Haku. _'Nailed it!'_ He thought to himself.

"What's up Haku-chan?" Naruto said with a smile. She smiled back a little nervously, something he instantly caught on to. He raised an eyebrow at her to speed up _her_ answer when she took a deep breath and began speaking.

"Well... you see... I uh... I can't get into my room." She muttered out, earning a slight look of confusion from the blond before it clicked in his mind. _'I see, she needs somewhere to sleep. I'm sorta flattered she came to me.' _He thought to himself with a slight smile.

"Well, come on in I guess." He said, moving out of the way so she could enter. She look at him nervously before shuffling into the room. Then he noticed she had a small bag. _'Well she was able to get some stuff, by the looks of things.' _He thought.

"Are you sure it's okay for me to stay here? I can leave if you..." She said before he raised a hand and shook his head. She simply gave him a grateful look before entering the small bathroom. He just sighed at the girls antics. What was so uncomfortable about sharing a room with someone?

That question was immediately answered when she came out wearing clothes a lot less practical and a lot more form fitting. He gulped nervously, trying to control himself. _'Well, I see the issue now. I can get through one night... right?' _He thought to himself.

Naruto got into his bed a little quickly before laying back and looking at the girl who was just standing still and looking around awkwardly. "Is something the matter Haku-chan?" He asked, getting a small squeak before she replied.

"Well I uh... don't know where to sleep." She said. Naruto, thinking of no other option decided to give her the more uncomfortable option.

"This bed is probably big enough for two, I don't mind sharing." He said, trying not to meet her eyes. She just gulped before mechanically getting into the bed and making sure not to get too close to the blond lest she do something silly.

After a few _very_ awkward moments they both settled into the strange situation they found themselves in. They were both on opposite ends of the bed, facing each other. Cerulean blue eyes meeting brown. They both smiled softly at the other before closing their eyes. Haku unconsciously shifted closer to Naruto and lay against him.

He made no move to stop this and just leaned close to her before whispering. "Good night, Haku-chan."

She smiled at this before replying. "Good night Naruto-kun."

They both drifted off comfortably. They'd likely need it tomorrow.

**-End-**

**So yeah, the downsides of the cursed seal are now set in stone. They will probably make it terrible, but screw it! This is my story.**

**Nice little spar between Naruto and Sasuke to test my fight writing abilities again! I need to make sure I'm ready for the fight-fest that is the preliminaries!**

**Anyway... Review, Follow, Favourite etc. **

**LiamMorg. Out.**

**Ja Ne!**


	10. Fights Between Friends and Foes

**I don't own Naruto. If I did I would be able to make accurate Japanese translations... how Kishi does it I'll never know. Seriously, try making 'Fire Release' translate to Katon. It won't happen.**

**Quote of the day/chapter: "To use your blade may cause harm to one... but if you look deeper, you may find that it protects another; To protect the weak, you must cull those who prey upon them."**

**Chapter 10 (Whoo! Double digits!): Fights Between Friends and Foes.**

**-Start-**

_"Well I uh... don't know where to sleep." She said. Naruto, thinking of no other option decided to give her the more uncomfortable option._

_"This bed is probably big enough for two, I don't mind sharing." He said, trying not to meet her eyes. She just gulped before mechanically getting into the bed and making sure not to get too close to the blond lest she do something silly._

_After a few ___very ___awkward moments they both settled into the strange situation they found themselves in. They were both on opposite ends of the bed, facing each other. Cerulean blue eyes meeting brown. They both smiled softly at the other before closing their eyes. Haku unconsciously shifted closer to Naruto and lay against him._

_He made no move to stop this and just leaned close to her before whispering. "Good night, Haku-chan."_

_She smiled at this before replying. "Good night Naruto-kun."_

_They both drifted off comfortably. They'd likely need it tomorrow._

**-With Naruto-**

Naruto found himself suddenly awaking in the streets of Konoha. He guessed he was in the dead centre of the village. He furrowed his brows as his vision cleared and instantly gasped as the world around him became clear; Konoha was burning to the ground. His eyes widened in panic as he tried to decipher what was happening.

He ran through the streets, finding bodies strewn around like ornaments; hung from various positions and massacred in the most brutal and vivid of ways. He forced down the urge to void his stomach at the sights and smells that came to his senses. He continued to run until he ran into someone he knew.

Kakashi was laying against a wall, his outfit ruined and his **Sharingan** eye missing from its socket. Naruto gasped at the sight and ran close, only to find the man stumble away from him when he noticed the blond approaching. Naruto reached out to place a hand on his shoulder only for the man to crumble to dust.

"What is this?!" Naruto exclaimed, not having a clue what was occurring around him. He'd been in the tower! There was nothing to explain how this all happened and why he was no longer where he just was.

He heard sobbing and ran towards it. Once he arrived he found a rather horrifying scene, Sakura was kneeling over Sasuke who was obviously dead; his body was torn apart as if an animal had ravaged him. He ran over to it and saw the pink haired girl look over to him with a mixture of fury and hatred.

"You monster!" She shouted, causing Naruto to take a step backwards in shock. "How could you do this?! After everything we did together, I bet you were happy when I almost died!" She accused. Naruto had no words and no excuses, not having the slightest idea what was happening. The girl ran towards him but as he reached out to stop her she simply fell to the ground, dead.

"This can't be happening!" He called out, not to anyone in particular. As he continued to run through the village he tripped over something and landed on his hands and knees above a puddle. He opened his eyes and immediately wished he hadn't. In his reflection there were blood red eyes that had slits, rather than pupils. The image in the reflection had thick black whisker marks and a deranged smile, covered entirely in blood.

He closed his eyes tightly, his mind in conflict over the events. He suddenly felt a small shift in the world and found that his hand felt wetter and sticky. He opened his eyes and nearly died from anguish at what he saw.

His hand was in the chest of Haku.

The girl was just looking at his face in pure unadulterated terror as he watched, completely shocked. She had tears running down her face with betrayal and sorrow evident in her eyes, her lips quivering in a mixture of fear and sadness. Naruto felt as though he couldn't breath, as though his world had been crushed.

"W-why N-Naru...to-k-kun?" She said, trying to speak despite the blood building in her throat and mouth, causing her to gurgle slightly. "I-I th-though I w-was pre-precious to y-you." She continued, causing the blond to shake his head furiously.

"No! This isn't right! I would never hurt you! Or anyone in the village!" He defended adamantly. The girl let out a weak laugh at this, obviously straining to simply stay alive with her obvious wound.

"This is your fault." She said, her voice no longer containing the fear or pain it did a mere moment ago, the blond widened his eyes at the change.

"You did this." She spoke again, causing Naruto to start trembling slightly. Her lips moved into an angry frown.

"You are nothing but a monster!" She shouted, making the blond just freeze in place.

"I never should've trusted you." She said evenly, before she crystallized and shattered into a thousand pieces.

"NO!" He shouted as the rest of the world around him shattered just like Haku did. Then the blond felt a pull on his consciousness and closed his eyes in sorrow.

**-The Real World-**

Naruto awoke frantically to find himself in his room in the tower, rather early in the morning. He sighed in exasperation as he looked over to his side to see Haku was still there. He smiled deeply upon realising everything was simply a nightmare. _'Thank Kami, I couldn't live with myself.'_ He thought to himself. Since the girl was somehow laying on one of his arms, he resigned himself to staying put for a while.

"_**Not like you to have nightmares Mortal. I don't know whether to be insulted or proud it was about you losing control over me." **_Kurama said from within Naruto's mind. He made the smallest of nods possible before replying.

"_Tell me about it, I haven't had a nightmare about that since Wave. Even then it was only because I DID lose control of you there." _He replied, earning a grunt of agreement from the fox.

"_**Indeed. You should be thankful I didn't try to take more control there, or the vixen in your bed would likely be dead." **_(Unintentional rhyme) Kurama replied, earning another nod from Naruto who couldn't help but agree.

"_I suppose I can't argue with that can I?" _He said, before he thought about the fox's strange way of referring to Haku. _"What do you mean 'Vixen'?" _He said, earning another grunt.

"_**I'm a fox genius. To foxes, females are vixens. That's just how it is."**_ The ageless creature replied. Naruto just sighed at the way he answered him. _'What, am I supposed to know what words foxes use?'_ He thought to himself.

"_Whatever. Well, I guess I ended up waking up early anyway, huh Kurama?" _Naruto replied, earning a small laugh from his Bijū companion.

"_**Sure seems that way Mortal."**_ The fox replied before getting serious. **_"That's enough chatting for now, your mate is stirring."_** He continued before cutting the link. Naruto immediately took note of the way he referred to Haku again.

"_Wait a minute! What do you mean mate!? KURAMA!"_ He shouted in his mind. _"So, that's what that feels like." _He said, referring to being cut off during their conversations. True to the fox's words, Haku's eyes began to flutter open as stretched out a little. Naruto was forced to lean back to avoid being punched in the face.

The girl gradually awoke and took note of her surroundings. _"Wait... this isn't my room." _She thought to herself, before her mind decided to recall the prior day. _"Oh, that's right... I slept in Naruto-kun's room last night..."_ She thought, before immediately spinning around to see the smiling face of the aforementioned blond.

He inwardly smirked at the blush that broke out across her face. She had to fight the urge to let out a girly 'eep' and jump out of the bed. The blond simply pulled his arm out from under her, now that she was sufficiently awake.

"Mornin' Haku-chan. I hope you slept well." He stated happily. Haku returned the gesture with a smile, eyes half lidded due to having just woken up.

"I did. Thank you for letting me stay here Naruto-kun." She said, earning a slight shake of the head from the boy.

"No need to thank me, it was the least I could do." He said with a determined tone. If there was one thing the blond Uzumaki had learned to cherish, it was his few true friends. Haku unwittingly let out an admiring sigh at the blond's kindness, though he didn't catch it.

Then they heard a knock on the door. Naruto rose from the bed and walked over to it, while Haku hid slightly, not wanting anyone to get the wrong idea. He opened it to find a random Chunnin standing there patiently, giving the blond a small nod as he looked up at him

"Good morning Naruto-san, I'm here to inform you to come to the main hall in the next 20 minutes for the next stage of the Chunnin Exams." He said professionally. Naruto kept a serious face on and gave the Chunnin a small bow, which he returned with a smile and walked away.

He closed the door before turning around. "You here that Haku-chan?" He called to the girl, getting a small nod from the girl. "Well we won't have time to shower or anything, so I'll be changing in the bathroom." He said, grabbing his usual outfit and walking into his bathroom. Haku just grabbed her clothes and changed.

After he re-emerged from the bathroom they both made their way down to the main hall. Naruto – having remembered something – turned to address his friend.

"You realise they're probably looking for you right?" He said, earning a confused look to break out across her beautiful face. Naruto had to resist the urge to 'Aww' at her. "W-well y'know, they went by individual rooms to find the contestants... and you weren't in yours." He said with a small stutter and faint blush.

She then sighed and nodded. _'Oh well, as long as I'm there on time nothing should happen.' _She thought to herself as they arrived at their destination.

**-The Main Hall-**

They walked into the hall to find almost all the Genin already there. Naruto looked around for Sasuke and nudged Haku to follow him once he'd found the Uchiha heir. Sasuke gave them a small smile as they approached, which the two returned.

Naruto looked around the room to see the Jounin-sensei of each team that passed along with several other Chunnin and Exam Proctors all standing around the Hokage. The wise old man took a quick look around the room before speaking.

"First off, congratulations on passing the Second Exam." He said. After a long silence Anko decided to speak up.

"We will now have an explanation of the Third Exam from Hokage-sama." She said, looking around the room. "Everyone listen up. Hokage-sama, please do the honours." She finished.

"Yes. The third exam will begin, but before the explanation there's one thing I want to make clear to all of you." he said, before taking a brief pause. "It's about the true purpose of this exam." He said.

"This exam is the epitome of a war between the great nations." He said, getting confused reactions. "Essentially, the Exam is staged to show which country is currently the most powerful. If one country has far more Genin in the finals than others, it is a testament to their strength." He continued.

"The country that shows the greatest strength will get more jobs following the exams and the country that shows the least will get less." He stated, again getting a little uproar between the Genin. As he was about to explain the next section of the Exam, a man appeared in front of him.

"Excuse me Hokage-sama, but I, Gekkō Hayate, the judge, will explain." The man now identified as Gekkō said, getting a nod from the Hokage.

"It's nice to meet you all." He said, turning to face the Genin. "Everyone, before the Third Exam there's something I want you to do." He said, taking a small pause to adjust the atmosphere.

"We need you all to partake in preliminary matches to see who gets to advance to the Third Exam's main battle." He said, getting a fair amount of outrage. "Simply put, there are too many examinees left, so we must reduce the number of Genin in the finals with a preliminary fight." He said.

"There will be many guests for the Third Exams, including Daimyo's and other Kage, so we must limit the amount of matches we show. Now if any would like to forfeit before we begin, do so." He finished.

Anko meanwhile was having a discussion with Kakashi. "We should have the kid taken out of the exams, his cursed seal reacts to chakra usage! If he's forced to fight now he may give in to it!" She said, somewhat loudly.

"Naruto has never been much of the type to just give up Anko." Kakashi replied somewhat jokingly.

"Stop messing around! He needs to be removed before something bad happens!" She said, turning to the Hokage. "I'm amazed he lasted this long, most people would be dead." She continued. "Hokage-sama!" She said to the elderly man. He simply stared forward and did not reply.

Kabuto took the time given to quit the exams. The Hokage and Anko seemed a little concerned by his actions and noted he'd done the same a few times prior.

The elderly Hokage decided to reply to Anko after a little while. "While what Orochimaru said is troubling, I believe we should let Naruto continue and watch him carefully, we will intervene if the mark gets out of control." He said commandingly, not giving her room to argue.

Hayate decided to finish the talk. "Let's begin the Preliminary matches." He said. "It will be a one-on-one match. There will be 10 matches. All victors will proceed to the Third Exam. There are no rules. You will win when the other is dead, unconscious or admits defeat. I can decide to end the match at any point."

"This screen behind me..." He said as a small compartment opened in the wall. "...Will decide the fighters. Now then, let us begin the first match." He said as the screen flickered on and went through names before stopping on Yoroi Akadō and Sasuke Uchiha.

"Looks like you're first Sasuke. Make it a good match will you? Don't want a boring first match now do we?" Naruto said, earning a nod from Sasuke as he patted him on the back.

"Those who are displayed on the board, step forward. Everyone else go up to the overlooking sections." The proctor said, as Sasuke and Yoroi walked forward the others went up to the balconies.

**-Sasuke VS Yoroi-**

"We will now begin the first match. Are there any objections?" He said.

Sasuke just smirked and clicked his knuckles. "None here." He said.

Yoroi just furrowed his brows. _'Shouldn't his cursed mark be affecting him?' _He thought before shaking his head in a negative.

_'Hmm, this guy seems shady. Maybe I should start off slow, just Taijutsu.' _Sasuke thought with a smirk. _'Yeah, that'll do.'_

In the stands Naruto and Haku were joined by Kakashi. He walked over to them before greeting them.

"Hey Naruto, Haku, guess you guys did pretty well in the second exam to arrive during the fourth day." He said, earning a smile and nod from Naruto and a similar gesture from Haku.

He then leaned close to Naruto before speaking. "Naruto, a word of warning. Don't use chakra during your fight. If the cursed seal acts up I will be forced to intervene and you will be classed as forfeiting." He said seriously. Naruto just chuckled – confusing the man greatly – and replied.

"You don't need to worry about that sensei... my... tenant... cleared that right up." He said with a grin. Kakashi's only visible eye widened. _'He can interact with the fox? This can't be good.'_ He thought to himself.

"What do you mean Naruto?" He asked.

"I mean the Kyūbi has removed the negative influence of the seal, something to do with having a strong host that isn't just some puppet. I can still use the seal but I will not lose control of myself." He replied seriously. Kakashi just nodded, outwardly satisfied with the answer. Inwardly however, he couldn't help but be concerned.

_'Sensei, things just don't get better for him, do they?'_ Kakashi thought to himself sadly.

Back down in the arena Hayate raised his hand before shouting. "Haijime!"

Yoroi placed his hands in a seal and spoke. "Let's go!"

Sasuke just smirked and replied. "Okay."

Yoroi's right hand began to glow with a blue hue, the colour likened to chakra. His left hand reached for a handful of Shuriken that he then threw at Sasuke, who had no issue deflecting them all with his own Kunai.

Yoroi then ran towards Sasuke quickly, causing the Uchiha to smirk before jumping back and throwing his Kunai at the Genin, which he easily dodged and continued his charge. Sasuke then entered his stance.

As Yoroi arrived his hand began glowing blue again and he took a swipe at Sasuke, who easily avoided it before punching Yoroi in the stomach and jumping away.

The masked Genin scowled and looked up at Sasuke, who's eyes had shifted into the **Sharingan**. Yoroi then began to sweat. _'He doesn't have the cursed mark! I don't stand a chance if he has access to his chakra!'_ The Man thought to himself.

In a fit of panic, Yoroi once again charged Sasuke with reckless abandon. He took another swipe at Sasuke, who merely grabbed his wrist with one hand, placed the other on the ground and kicked him into the air.

Naruto raised his eyebrows at the events. _'So, he copied Lee did he? Those eyes of his... quite the treasure.' _He thought with a smirk.

Meanwhile Lee, Guy and Kakashi were all rather surprised at the use of one of Lee and Guy's signature techniques.

"That part may been borrowed, but it's all mine from now on." Sasuke said, after appearing behind Yoroi. "This is the end, let's get on with this." He said.

He then kicked Yoroi in the side, which the man blocked. He swung around and landed a punch on the man's face, hitting him to the ground. Then he close-lined him in the stomach on the way down and finished with an axe kick in the same place as soon as they hit the floor.

"**Shishi Rendan! (****L****ion's****Combo!)**" Sasuke called out. This caused Yoroi to spew up blood and for Sasuke to skid across the floor. Sasuke promptly got up to his feet and crossed his arms with a smirk.

Hayate walked over to Yoroi and gave him a quick look over before speaking. "Since Yoroi Akadō is unable to continue the winner of the first match is Sasuke Uchiha." He proclaimed loudly. Team 7 and Kakashi smiled at this while Naruto called out.

"You took your time Sasuke, geez." He said sarcastically, getting a grunt of annoyance from the Uchiha. "Nah, I'm just kidding. Good match Sasuke." He said, earning a small smile from Sasuke before he made his way up to join them in the stands.

As he arrived he quickly got a fist bump from Naruto and a slight smile and nod from Haku who decided to comment on the match. "That was clever Sasuke, using Lee's move like that. I suppose it was a good thing you fought him before." She said, earning a nod from the Uchiha.

Down on the field, Hayate decided to speak up. "We will now display the second match up!" He said, as the board went through names, ending up on Shino Aburame and Zaku Abumi.

**-Shino VS Zaku-**

Both of the boys made their way down to the field and stood across from one another before Hayate spoke up. "Fighters, step up..." He said, causing them both to come closer to the centre. "...We will now begin the second match." He continued.

Naruto looked a little sheepish at the cast Zaku had his arm in which Haku easily caught on to. "So, feeling a little guilty are we?" She said a little sarcastically. He just looked at her with a slight smirk before shaking his head.

"I'm not sorry that I retaliated for him hurting you, I'm just a little sorry I ruined his arm." He spoke honestly, causing Haku to put her hand on his shoulder and smile at him a little. Sasuke just rolled his eyes while Kakashi smiled at the interaction between the two.

Hayate looked between the two of them closely before holding his hand up, walking back a few paces and calling out. "Haijime!"

Both fighters stayed mostly still while Shino just spoke evenly. "If you fight me here you will not win. I suggest you forfeit." He said. Zaku just smirked and shook his functional arm around a little before getting into a low stance.

"Please, one arm will be plenty enough for someone like you!" He said overconfidently. Shino just rolled his eyes before Zaku ran towards him and took a swing at the side of his head, which Shino blocked easily.

"You can't beat me with just one arm." He stated, as though it was a fact.

"Stop talking back! Take this!" Zaku shouted before he let out a **Zankūha** on the unsuspecting Aburame. Shino was knocked back a fair distance by this and was left sprawled out across the ground.

"Come on, stand up!" Zaku taunted, but was surprised when Shino did just that. They then heard the strange chattering of insects. This sound turned out to be insects underneath Shino's outfit and skin.

After a few moments Zaku turned around to see a veritable horde of insects converging on him from behind. Shino remained stoic as he addressed his opponent.

"These insects are a special breed. They consume chakra. If I attack you with this many you may not survive, it is recommended that you forfeit." He said, taking a pause before continuing. "Attack the insects and I will defeat you. Attack me, the insects attack. You cannot win, this is my trump card." He finished.

Naruto again looked a little sheepish. "I guess it's my fault he's gonna lose isn't it?" He said rhetorically, earning a nod from his teammates. "Oops." He finished.

Zaku just tried to move his other arm with little success. He then sighed and raised his functional arm. "I forfeit." He said loudly. Naruto just smirked at the boy's failure while Shino made no obvious movement.

Hayate then nodded before raising his hand and calling out. "Winner by forfeit, Shino Aburame." He said. Team 7 were all pondering the boy's ability.

"Well, Shino was always a rather quiet and composed individual, I guess I shouldn't be surprised that he could be strong... but he never struck me as a powerful person." Naruto said seriously. His teammates all nodded.

"Yeah, I thought he would be a weakling to be honest." Sasuke said, earning a slightly disappointed look from Haku. This in turn made him turn around with a pout while muttering something along the lines of 'I was just sayin'.'

"Well, without Naruto-kun's... actions... during the last part of the Exam Zaku would've been able to fight back." Haku said, making Naruto look sheepish once again. Sasuke just chuckled at the look on the blond's face.

Hayate was in the arena waiting patiently for the room to settle down before speaking. "I would like to move on to the next match, now." He said, before the board began to go through names once again before stopping on Kankuro and Misumi Tsurugi. Kankuro had one eye closed and a slightly evil grin upon seeing this.

**-Kankuro VS Misumi-**

Kankuro and Misumi met in the centre of the arena just like the previous competitors before Misumi spoke up.

"Unlike Yoroi, I won't go easy on you just because you're a kid." He said somewhat arrogantly. Kankuro just let out a snort of laughter before Misumi continued. "Let me warn you. Once my move gets a hold of you, it's over. Then give up, I will finish this quickly." He finished.

"Then... I'll finish this match quickly too!" Kankuro exclaimed, pulling the bound figure off his back and holding it to his side with his right hand on top of it. Misumi narrowed his eyes while Kankuro just stared him down.

Hayate took a moment before speaking. "Then, let us begin the Third Match. Haijime!" He said.

"I won't let you do anything..." Misumi said, before running towards Kankuro. "Victory goes to the swiftest!" He said, punching at Kankuro who blocked him with a little effort. Then Misumi's arm constricted around Kankuro and the remainder of his body followed suit, getting him in a choke-hold.

Naruto simply gagged. "What the hell? That's disgusting... and surprisingly useful." He said with a dead-panned expression. Haku was quick to agree with him and Sasuke couldn't disagree.

"I can take my joints off their hinges and use my chakra to control my loosened body." Misumi said, still constricting Kankuro, who had dropped the bound figure due to his position. "Give up, or I strangle you." He said.

Kankuro refused to give up and Misumi promptly broke his neck. Earning shocked looks from all around the room. Kankuro's face began to shatter however and the head fully turned to reveal a puppet face underneath Kankuro's.

"Now it's my turn." The puppet body said in Kankuro's voice, before it constricted Misumi with its extendible arms. Then the bound figure Kankuro was carrying opened to reveal the real Kankuro.

"Ah, a puppeteer. Interesting." Naruto said. Haku just raised an eyebrow and looked at him.

"What do you mean interesting? I didn't think you'd be interested in that type of fighting." She replied, getting a shrug from the boy.

"I'm not going to use it myself, but it will cause problems for most people here." He said. The confused expressions he got made him elaborate. "Puppet users are not a common breed, so countermeasures aren't common knowledge." He said, earning nods.

"I'd like to have a crack at him." Sasuke said with a smirk, earning a chuckle from Kakashi who put him hand on the boy's shoulder before speaking.

"You may get your chance Sasuke... but for now, watch carefully." The Jounin said. Team 7 nodded and turned their attention back to the fight.

Kankuro having fully emerged from the bandages that covered him was now in a crouching stance, his left hand glowing blue with multiple threads made of chakra coming from his fingers and connecting to the puppet. _'So, that's how he controls it at least.' _Naruto thought.

Misumi attempted to give up, only to have the puppet constrict him even more tightly than it already was, causing him to cry out in pain and fall unconscious.

"Since his opponent is unable to fight, the winner of the Third Match is Kankuro." Hayate said casually.

Naruto just smirked at this. "So, Kankuro was able to win his match showing the bare minimum of his ability. That puppet is likely armed to the teeth with various weaponry. I look forward to fighting him, if I get the chance." He said out loud, earning a nod from Sasuke and a sigh from Haku.

"Is that all you two think about? It must be a boy thing..." Haku said, causing Sasuke to snort and Naruto to pout. Then Hayate let out a loud cough – whether intentional or not – to get everyone's attention.

"Moving on, we will now start the Fourth Match." Hayate called out, turning everyone's attention to the board. The board flicked through names and eventually stopped on Ino Yamanaka and Neji Hyūga. (AN: First original match, why did Ino have to be so weak?)

Neji just let out a sigh as he looked over at his opponent. "Great, I get to fight a weakling no even worth my time. Typical, fate is cruel." He said, walking down to the arena and missing Tenten's rather annoyed expression over another fate speech. Ino looked rather afraid of the elder Hyūga but made her way down to the arena as well.

**-Neji VS Ino-**

The two stood across from each other with varying expressions. Neji looked generally unamused while Ino looked worried. Hayate gave the two a moment of silence before shouting out. "Haijime!"

"Do us both a favour and forfeit would you?" Neji said, causing Ino to slightly face fault. "Fate has already decided I will be victorious in this battle, so don't waste our time." He continued, making Ino scowl at his arrogance.

"Yeah right, as if I'd give up that easy! I'll beat you and prove myself to Sasuke-kun!" She exclaimed, causing a certain Raven haired boy to groan loudly and head-butt the railing. Naruto just laughed at his teammate, enjoying his discomfort greatly.

"If you truly fight to impress a boy, then you are even more useless than I thought." Neji said, making Ino growl at him before running forward. Neji simply got into the **J****ūken (Gentle Fist)** stance and awaited her arrival.

She threw a punch at the pale-eyed boy which was blocked easily, a little too easily as his **Dōjutsu** allowed him to see her strike without any issue along with the fact she was not physically remarkable in any way. He allowed her the chance to at least do something and did not retaliate, allowing her to throw numerous blows his way which he saw and blocked with almost pitiful ease.

After the girl had enough free shots Neji jumped back and shook his head. "Pitiful, to think someone like yourself can call themselves a shinobi. You are a disgrace to Kunoichi everywhere." He said coldly, making the girl frown somewhat sadly.

He decided he'd indulged her long enough and shot forward with speed and finesse, quickly getting to her and shooting numerous palm strikes at various chakra points across her body. She was unable to keep up with his speed and flexibility and simply took nearly all of them, eventually just crumpling to the ground, unable to move.

"Pathetic." He spat out before looking over at the proctor expectantly. Hayate just sighed and raised his hand.

"As Ino Yamanaka is unable to continue the winner of this match is Neji Hyūga." He said, allowing Neji to walk away from the girl with a slightly 'Tsk' and back up to join his teammates. Asuma simply shook his head at his student while Shikamaru and Chōji both felt bad for the girl.

Team 7 couldn't believe just how bad the girl was. Naruto couldn't help but think back to how... useless, for lack of a better word, Sakura was on their first C-rank mission. He sighed in dismay. _'They need to change the graduation conditions in the academy. If people like this can graduate then something is obviously wrong.' _He thought to himself while shaking his head.

"Well Ino was certainly unimpressive." Haku said, trying to avoid outright calling her 'bad'. Naruto and Sasuke immediately agreed. "Neji was something though, I didn't see what he was doing but it was obviously rather effective." She said, causing Sasuke to grunt a little to get their attention.

"He's a member of the Hyūga clan. They have a **Dōjutsu **that lets them see the chakra network and gives them almost perfect chakra control. Then they use the **Jūken** to attack **Tenketsu (Chakra Points)**which basically stops a person from moulding chakra in that area. Hit enough **Tenketsu **and the person is rendered basically immobile." Sasuke said, knowing all about the Hyūga clan since they were basically the rival clan to the Uchiha – after the Senju all but died out – due to the fact they had a **Dōjutsu **too.

Naruto raised his eyebrows at this. "You mean Hinata can do that too?" He said, getting a nod. "Huh, I never would've guessed." He said absently. Haku somewhat frowned at the mention of Hinata. _'Why does that girl seem to dislike me so much, we've barely met...'_ She thought.

After a bout of silence Naruto thought of something Neji said. "I'm not a fan of the way Neji referred to fate... he made it sound almost as if he will always be better than everyone else." Naruto said, getting a slight thinking pose from Haku.

"It's possible he's had something which he would describe as fate mess with his life somewhat, meaning he now believes it's an inescapable thing." She said, earning a slight nod from her teammates.

"That would make sense." Sasuke said, getting their attention. "The Hyūga are a weird clan, they have both a branch and main house. The branch is born to serve the main house. Since Hinata is the heir of the main family and Neji is older than her, he's obviously in the branch family." He finished.

Naruto frowned. "Well, that may not be a good thing, but that doesn't excuse such attitude." He said with a determined expression, earning nods from his teammates.

The board lit up once more and shifted through unintelligible letters before stopping on Tenten and Temari.

The two girls then made their way down to the arena where they just stood apart from each other, neither making a sound as they waited for the match to start.

Haku smiled at this. "Seems like these two are serious about being shinobi, good." She said, earning nods from her teammates.

**-Temari VS Tenten-**

Hayate stood between the two girls and spoke. "Fifth match, Tenten and Temari, step up." He said, taking a very long pause... for dramatic effect probably. "Haijime." He said neutrally.

Tenten immediately jumped back a few feet in preparation while Guy and Lee shouted a string of cheers that generally annoyed the audience. Temari just smirked at the way her opponent was acting, careful but efficient.

"You want to observe what I do?" The Suna Kunoichi said. "This is just a warning, but if I start attacking, you're going to be finished in a second." She continued, causing Tenten to step back in preparation.

"You're not skilled enough to see how I'll attack. Stop trying to look good. I don't mind, come on." She stated, making Tenten smirk back at her. Naruto however was not so amused.

"Man, what a class act these Suna Shinobi are. The Red-head is crazy, the other guy wears a cat outfit and plays with dolls and she is overconfident and a braggart." Naruto stated with a bored expression. Kakashi decided to intervene at this.

"I wouldn't call her out to be overconfident yet. That fan on her back can be a very powerful weapon is she uses it how I think she will." He said confidently, earning a sigh from the blond.

"Your not going to tell me how she uses it are you?" He said, getting a shake of the heard. _'Hard ass.' _The blond thought to himself.

Back in the arena, Tenten decided to reply to her bragging. "You sure seem confident..." She said, before crouching ever so slightly and taking a more determined expression. "...Then I'll go without hesitation!" She said, jumping into the air and throwing various Shuriken at the Suna nin. Temari simply smirked and seemingly flickered, before all the Shuriken fell harmlessly to the ground.

"I missed? That can't be!" Tenten exclaimed.

"What's wrong? Was that attack just to test me?" Temari replied, taunting the girl. "Or did you shrink up with fear and can no longer aim?" She continued, making Tenten scowl slightly.

"I thought that I would have more fun, but it seems that I can't expect much from you." She finished, making Tenten 'Tsk' in annoyance while Lee and Guy couldn't believe she missed.

Shikamaru just sighed before muttering out. "How troublesome." under his breath. Naruto caught this and sought to enquire on what he meant.

"What do you mean Shikamaru?" The blond asked. The lazy Nara just sighed.

"Suna wins again." He said, getting a raised eyebrow from Naruto before he looked at the field.

"As much as I hate to say it, I think you may be right." He said, lowering his head slightly.

Back on the field, Tenten began to run in a circle around Temari before jumping into the air and taking out a scroll. She spun around, scroll in hand so it twirled in a strange vase formation around her. The inside of the scroll had masses of sealing formulas with ninja tools in them. Tenten began to summon and throw these tools at Temari, none of them doing anything but falling to the ground as Temari held her slightly opened fan in her left hand.

Naruto smirked at this. "I see it now." He said, getting everyone's attention. "She's using wind manipulation with that fan to prevent the weapons getting near her... a powerful tool." He said, earning look of bewilderment from all but his teammates.

Neji furrowed his brows at the young Uzumaki. _'For the dead last of his year, he sure seems intelligent and observant. Was he tricking everyone? Or did he truly change his fate... No, that's impossible.' _The pale-eyed boy thought to himself.

Kakashi merely whistled before speaking. "I didn't expect you to figure it out that quick Naruto... good work." He said, earning a smile from the blond. His smile then immediately transformed into a frown as he looked down at the arena.

"If I'm right – and I'm certain I am – Tenten has no chance in this fight. It's like a Genjutsu user against someone with perfect chakra control... there's no way she can hit Temari with any of her tools." He said, earning a frown from Lee and Guy, who unfortunately couldn't help but agree with the blond.

Neji just shook his head and called out to the girl. "Tenten." He said, getting her to turn ever so slightly. "Forfeit. You can't win this." He said in an uncaring fashion. The girl just widened her eyes before sighing.

"Proctor. I forfeit." She said sadly. _'I hope you were right, Naruto'_ Team Nine's members thought to themselves. Temari simply huffed in losing her chance to have fun.

Hayate smiled slightly, knowing what would've happened had she not forfeit the match. "Winner by forfeit, Temari." He said neutrally, causing her to smirk and walk back to her team. Temari arrived back up on the overlooking balcony with a slight frown.

"Care you let me in on the secret?" She said to Neji. The pale-eyed boy simply huffed and pointed at Naruto. Tenten furrowed her brows at him as he sighed.

"You couldn't have won because she was a wind user." He said, causing Tenten to raise an eyebrow. "She was using her fan to fire off streams of wind, any tool you threw wouldn't have touched her. It was an unfortunate match up for you." The blond said honestly. Tenten just sighed and nodded, it made sense.

The board then went through names once more while everyone was talking before landing on Shikamaru Nara and Kin Tsuchi. Shikamaru just stood lazily while Ino shouted a string of cheers at him while Kin was standing opposite him casually.

Little did she know that Shikamaru was considered a genius and was carefully thinking through what he'd seen of the Oto team. He was well aware they all used unusually weapons based on sounds or pressure, so he knew she'd do the same.

"Shikamaru VS Kin." Hayate said, before throwing his hand out dramatically. "Haijime!"

**-Shikamaru VS Kin-**

Shikamaru instantly got into the stance for his **Kagemane no Jutsu (Shadow Imitation Technique)**, holding up the rat seal before calling out his technique name. Kin was not expecting this and barely managed to avoid the shadow that crawled across the ground and towards her.

She retaliated with two senbon aimed directly at his head, which he promptly ducked only to notice there were bells attached to them.

"Bells?" He said in confusion, before letting out a small laugh. "That sure is a classic trick. Next you're going to throw a needle with a bell and one without a bell at once, right? If I react to the sound of the bell and dodge it the one without a bell will hit me." He said analytically. She smirked before replying.

"You talk too much!" She said, throwing a few needles his direction.

"I just have to be careful and not fall for your Shadow Needle technique..." He said while dodging the needles carefully. Then he heard bells behind him and turned to see the bells that were attached to the first two senbon were moving due to attached strings.

"A string?" He said, turning around to see Kin moving for her weapons. "Shoot!" He shouted.

"Too late!" She called out, throwing a few senbon with her free hand, connecting with Shikamaru who let out a grunt of pain and was thrown back as though the tiny needles could propell him across the room. Under close inspection, it turned out he made the needles hit his arm to protect himself.

Naruto just let out a small smirk at the fight and turned to his female teammate. "Well Haku it seems as though you have something in common with our Oto Kunoichi there." He said with a playful smirk. Haku simply frowned and nodded.

"Yes, not many senbon users around, though her usage focuses on distraction using the bells rather than my quick and lethal style." She said boastfully. _'Confident in your abilities Haku-chan?' _Naruto thought with a smile.

Down in the arena Shikamaru pulled the senbon out of his arm and got ready to retaliate. Kin would not allow this however and pulled her strings once more. As the sound of the bells reverberated through the hall and into Shikamaru's ears he suddenly found himself off balance and seeing double... or thousand. He fell to his knees.

"Those who listen to the sound of bells become like that." The girl said with a small giggle. "The vibration from the sound of this special bell works directly on the eardrum up to the brain. Then it will show you an illusion." She explained. Shikamaru threw his hands over his ears in a futile attempt to block out the sound.

The multiple illusionary copies of Kin started to mock Shikamaru as he could not move nor could he discern which of the illusions was the real one. (Despite the original having not moved, mind you.)

Since Kin did not know about the inner workings of his shadow manipulation abilities he was able to use her strings shadow as a means of connecting his shadow to her. After moving her to the back wall with his shadow still connected, he leaned back and caused her to slam her head into the aforementioned wall, ending the match.

"Since his opponent can no longer continue, the winner is Shikamaru Nara." Hayate spoke after checking that Kin was truly unconscious. Naruto and the rest of the Genin were rather impressed by the tactical ability of the otherwise lazy Nara.

"Well how about that." Naruto said, getting everyone's attention. "Seems everyone has a trick up their sleeve... can't wait to show them mine." He said with a devious grin, getting Neji to raise an eyebrow. _'What could he be hiding?' _He thought, before something clicked. _'_**_Byakugan!_** He thought, before analysing Naruto's chakra. _'Strange, it has a slightly pink tint to it...'_ He thought, his curiosity unabated.

(AN: In my story, Kekkei Genkai cause noticeable alteration in chakra signature. I thought it made sense. Haku's would be a whitish-blue due to her ice release. Dojutsu are eye only so no chakra alteration occurs.)

The board once again went through names as Lee chanted 'I'm next' repeatedly. Naruto shook his head with a small smile at the antics of the green mini-beast. Then the board finally stopped on two names. Naruto Uzumaki and Kiba Inuzuka. Naruto looked over at Kiba and gave him a devilish smile, making the Inuzuka shiver a little. _'The dead last? This will be an easy fight_' The boy thought to himself.

As Naruto turned to walk away his arm was grabbed by Sasuke. "You'd better win Naruto, I wont have you making Team 7 look bad in front of everyone." He said with a smirk, making Naruto chuckle slightly. Haku just gave a warm smile and a quick 'Good Luck' which he nodded to and walked down to the field.

Naruto and Kiba found themselves standing apart from one another. Naruto just stood looking as impassive as he could while Kiba couldn't keep the grin off his face. _'He's underestimating me. Good.'_ Naruto thought to himself, his face unchanging. Then he noticed something.

"Proctor-san." He said, getting Hayate's attention. "Are... dogs allowed?" He said, getting a quick nod followed by an answer.

"The Inuzuka clan are trained to use their **Ninken (Ninja Hounds)** as a supplement to their fighting style from a young age. They are as much a tool as your Shuriken." He said, earning a nod from Naruto who closed his eyes and looked down.

"I see, just checking." He said cryptically. In honesty, he'd used the description to ascertain more information about Kiba's style._ 'So, I can expect Akamaru to play a role in the fight. Anything from a back up fighter to a partner.'_ He thought analytically. Kiba was just smiling with false superiority as his clan's fighting style was mentioned.

Meanwhile Shikamaru in the observation area just smirked before speaking. "Clever guy." He said getting the attention of those nearby. "He used the rules to get information about his opponent, who knew Naruto was so troublesome." He said, getting smirks from the remainder of Team 7.

Chōji decided to enquire about this. "Hey Kakashi-sensei." He said, getting the man's attention. "Just how much has Naruto changed since the academy?" He said, getting a small laugh from the man.

"Well Chōji, if I had to say, I'd say entirely." He said, getting dropped jaws from all around. "He's on par with Sasuke, if I had to estimate his skill, he's no dead last anymore." He said with a happy eye-smile. Kakashi was truly proud of Naruto's growth. The rest of the Genin – bar Team 7 – couldn't believe their ears. _'Impossible!'_ Neji thought. _'Nobody can defy their fate!' _He thought with a scowl.

"Seventh Match, Uzumaki Naruto VS Kiba Inuzuka." Hayate droned out. Naruto just rolled his eyes as Kiba narrowed his eyes at Naruto a little.

**-Naruto VS Kiba (Main Event)-**

"What? Aren't you going to shout out about how awesome you are or how you need to show your moves?" Kiba said mockingly. Naruto just stayed quiet, further riling up the dog tamer. "Hey! I'm talking to you!" He shouted out.

"Kiba, this is a no holds barred fight. Do we really have time to chat about our day?" Naruto said condescendingly, making Kiba growl in fury. Up in the stands Sasuke laughed a little a Kiba's expense while Haku just shook her head at the fact Naruto was managing to rile the boy up by saying so little.

"You little... Akamaru!" He called out to his dog, earning a small bark in return. "Don't do anything, I'll be more than enough for this loser." He said with a scowl. Naruto let the smallest of smiles grace his features. _'Fool. Should I try and win with just Taijutsu? Yes... it'll be worth it... and I can always change strategies if I get overwhelmed." _The Uzumaki heir thought, letting his smile deepen a little.

"What are you smiling at?!" Kiba barked out.

"Nothing at all Kiba." Naruto said, his face back in a serious expression. Kiba just let out a 'Tsk' and quietened down. Most of the Rookie Nine and their respective sensei – regardless of what Kakashi had said – couldn't help but underestimate the boy. Kiba thought back to their academy days when Naruto couldn't perform the most basic techniques and grinned.

"Good luck Naruto-kun." Haku called out, making him turn around and wink at her before turning back to Kiba, something that didn't go unnoticed by the rest of the room. Haku simply blushed and turned away.

"I'll beat you in one hit out of pity." Kiba said, holding up his hand and clenching it into a fist. Naruto just sighed and shook his head.

"Geez Kiba are we fighting or having a tea party. Be more professional would you?" Naruto said, running a hand through his blond spikes. Kiba scowled while a lot of the people in the room were surprised by his rather tame attitude.

"Told you." Kakashi said with an eye-smile.

"Stop acting tough!" Kiba said, once again causing Naruto to roll his eyes. _'He doesn't know when to shut up. I can help with that.'_ He thought with an even face once more.

"Then if both fighters are ready, Haijime." Hayate said, making Naruto jump back a few steps while Kiba got into a slight crouch holding up a hand seal. **_"Skikyaku no Jutsu (Four Legs Technique)"_** He thought to himself as he began to glow with chakra and his body became more feral; his nails extending and getting down on all fours.

"Let's go!" Kiba shouted before blurring forward. Naruto narrowed his eyes as he saw an elbow strike approaching at high speeds. _'Well at least he wasn't all talk.' _The blond thought as he grabbed Kiba's arm – with a lot of effort – and threw him back to where Akamaru was.

Kurenai and Team 8 widened their eyes at the fact that Kiba's speed was beaten so easily by the dead last of the class. Kurenai looked over to Kakashi to see him eye-smiling knowingly at her. _'What did you do to this kid Kakashi?'_ She thought to herself.

"You're fast Kiba. I wasn't quite expecting that." Naruto said plainly. Kiba got up off the ground and growled at the young Uzumaki. The other Genin were rather surprised at his unfazed expression. The Suna team were interested in the boy, while Kankuro growled at him. _'That's the brat that made a fool of me, I so hope he loses painfully.'_ He thought to himself.

"Interesting. Mother would like a taste of your blood Uzumaki." Gaara said ominously to himself. His siblings promptly backed away from the slightly insane Red-head.

Kiba promptly ran at Naruto with Akamaru in tow before pulling out strange purple spheres from his pouch. _'Oh? What's this? Smoke bombs?'_ Naruto thought to himself as numerous smoke bombs were thrown at him, filling his view with a thick purple smog.

Then he felt blows rain upon him from various directions. He was able to block all of them with a great deal of effort before running out of the smokescreen. Akamaru then jumped at him and bit down on his arm. This didn't get the expected reaction, however as 'Naruto' turned to smoke.

Kiba and Akamaru then jumped out of the smoke and began to look around. "Where the hell is he?!" He shouted as the smoke finally cleared, to reveal a small hole in the ground. Kiba had no time to ponder this as Naruto broke through the ground a small distance in front of him and got to his feet with an impassive gaze.

"Is that it?" He taunted, getting gasps from all around the Rookies – Kiba included. Up in the stands everyone was a little surprised by the actions.

Kurenai turned to Kakashi with a shocked expression. "You taught **Doton** Ninjutsu to a Genin!?" She exclaimed, earning a casual nod in response. "Did you teach elemental jutsu to all of your team?" She asked.

"Yes. Sasuke and Haku could already use one or two elemental Ninjutsu anyway, so I thought it fair to even the playing field a little." He said with an eye-smile. The Rookies were not expecting this little turn of events and began to converse.

"Unbelievable, that troublesome blond is good enough to use **Doton** Ninjutsu without making a sound while switching out with a shadow clone. That was pretty clever." Shikamaru said, getting nods from all around.

Sasuke simply smirked. "He's not done yet, that was the tip of the iceberg." He said, getting dropped jaws from all around the room.

"What else can he do?" Ino asked. Haku just smiled and looked up.

"Something you definitely won't expect." She said cryptically. Neji once again was furious that Naruto seemed to be opposing his 'fate'. The dead last should not be able to succeed in anything, at least in Neji's mind.

"So... What next Kiba?" Naruto said. Kiba simply looked at Akamaru and nodded. Naruto however smiled devilishly, confusing Kiba.

"You forgot one little thing Kiba." Naruto said.

"Oh? And what might that be loser?" Kiba replied. Naruto just chuckled darkly before continuing.

"I can use the **Kage Bushin no Jutsu**." He said, as multiple 'Naruto's' emerged from the ground around Kiba and began throwing punches and kicks at the Inuzuka. He managed to deal with them, but not before sustaining a rather significant beating. Naruto just whistled slightly as he waited for Kiba to retaliate.

"Enough of this, I'm gonna get serious now!" Kiba shouted, turning to Akamaru and reaching into his pouch and grabbing something before throwing it to Akamaru. The dog promptly ate it and began to grow slightly and his fur became red. Kiba then ate his own pill. Naruto scowled slightly at this _'Great, food pills. Game changers, those things'_ He thought with a frown.

"Sorry, did you miss lunch? We can take a 5 minutes break if you like." Naruto said somewhat casually, arms crossed in an uninterested stance. The Rookies sweat-dropped at his attitude.

"Yep, seems Naruto is still in there." Chōji said, getting nods from all around and a slight facepalm from Sasuke.

"Let's go, Akamaru!" Kiba shouted, making Akamaru jump on his back. **"Jūjin Bushin! (Beast Human Clone!)**" Kiba shouted as they were both enveloped in smoke, which cleared to reveal two copies of Kiba, who both had dog like features including extended canines and fingernails.

"Well, congratulations Kiba you've finally found someone as ugly as yourself... Yourself!" Naruto shouted with a small chuckle, causing some other the other occupants of the room to start laughing unintentionally. Kiba continued to growl while Naruto calmed himself and went back into battle mode.

"Now this match will end." Kiba said. "Four legged technique!" Kiba called out as he and his clone jumped at Naruto and got ready to take a swipe at him.

"**Kage Bushin no Jutsu." **Naruto said calmly, causing two clones to appear at his side and block each Kiba blows before Naruto dispelled them and took off into a spin kick, hitting both Kiba's faces. They were sent back a small distance while Naruto remained still.

"Wow, Naruto is really making Kiba look bad." Ino said, her eyebrows having been stuck in a raised position for the last few minutes. Shikamaru nodded and replied.

"You're right, not to mention his use of techniques is near perfect, no move seems wasted. How troublesome..." The lazy Nara said, earning a small tick mark to form on Sasuke's head as he heard the word troublesome.

"I told you Naruto had more to show you." He said almost tauntingly. Shikamaru just let out a 'Tsk' at the reply.

"Damn it! Just go down!" Kiba shouted at the blond who made no obvious reaction in retaliation. Kiba and his clone both zig-zagged towards Naruto who scowled at the formation. They arrived and threw a swipe from both sides. Naruto fell back, placing a hand on the ground before pushing himself away from them.

The two Kiba duplicated didn't give up easily however and kept charging in, looking for more. _'I need to stay on the ground. If I go in the air his superior speed will let him hit me.'_ Naruto thought, while evading various slices. He jumped away and slightly fell as he accidentally jumped back into the edge of one of the holes he made earlier. _'Dammit!'_ The blond mentally scowled.

"Ha! Got you now!" Kiba said as he and his clone ran forward, before they began to twist their bodies into small twisters of death. **"Gatsūga!"** Kiba shouted as they whirled towards Naruto. _'Dammit, I can't reach the ground for an earth wall!'_ Naruto mentally scowled. He sighed. _'No choice then...'_

"**Shōton: Kurenai no Kajitsu! (Crystal Release: Crystal Fruit!)**." He called out, as an egg shaped crystal barrier was erected around him, with triangular sections covering its face. Kiba and Akamaru ploughed into it and didn't make the slightest of dents.

Naruto just got to his feet within the barrier and smiled a little at the shocked expressions throughout the room. He poked out one of the triangular sections with his finger as if it was nothing before speaking.

"Sorry Kiba I didn't quite feel that, care to try again?" He said tauntingly. The various Genin and Jounin-sensei around the room were certainly not expecting this development. Kurenai and Asuma immediately turned to Kakashi.

"Naruto Uzumaki has a **Kekkei Genkai**?!" Asuma shouted at the man, earning more dropped jaws from the Rookie Genin along with team 9. "How is this possible? Does this mean we know who his parents are?" He said, a little more reigned in.

"Well, we know who ONE of his parents is, he did announce it during the first test. She didn't have his bloodline, however." Kakashi said, earning a slight nod from the still shell-shocked Jounin. Kiba wasn't doing much better.

"What the hell is this Naruto?!" Kiba shouted, trying to comprehend what he was seeing. Naruto just let out an amused sigh.

"This... is my **Kekkei Genkai**, The **Shōton**. It allows me to create, shape and control various types of crystals. They are rather hard to break, so good luck with beating me and all." Naruto taunted to the boy, earning a scowl in return.

The Red-head from Suna was now barely containing his excitement. He was literally trembling with a malicious grin on his face. His siblings were getting a little worried he may try something... something bad.

Naruto clicked his neck and shook his head and around a little before raising his hand and clicking his fingers, resulting in the crystal fruit shattering instantly into a rather pretty shower of pink crystal shards. He then crossed his arms and smiled.

"As fun as this dance has been, let's cut the music." He said channelling chakra into his cursed seal, feeling the dark chakra overcome him. A slightly malicious smile broke out across his features as he got into a crouch, much to the surprise of everyone in the room once more.

Team 10 and the remainder of Team 7 were very worried by the action. Most worried, however were Anko and Kakashi.

Anko decided to call out. "Kakashi! Stop him now, before he-" She said as she was cut off by the same blond.

"Ah, Anko-san I have this completely under control if you don't mind." He said calmly, shocking the woman and the Oto 'Jounin-sensei'. _'Impossible! That damn brat has overcome MY cursed seal, that is completely impossible!' _The 'Oto jounin' thought to himself. Anko had similar sentiments.

"Oh no, he's using that thing again." Ino said, getting a nod from her teammates and Team 7. The rest of the Rookies in the room were a little confused by the power he was using however.

"What the hell is this chakra?" Asuma asked, taking a pause when he didn't get an answer. "It feels evil, and those markings..." He said. Kakashi just scowled and decided to hold his tongue. _'I hope you are telling the truth, I don't want to lose Minato-sensei's legacy to Orochimaru.'_ He thought to himself.

Naruto just disappeared suddenly, much to the shock of the Inuzuka. He looked around frantically until he heard the sound of something cutting air. He looked up to see countless pink needles of crystal approaching him. He could do little as they pinned him into place. Naruto landed and shook his head.

"Tsk tsk tsk... I'm pretty disappointed Kiba. I wouldn't have used the seal if I thought you would go down that quick." He then felt a small chakra flare from behind him with his sensory ability.

"**Doton: Doryūheki."** He called out calmly, placing his hands to the ground before a large wall of earth appeared behind him. 'Kiba' then slammed into the wall and was thrown backwards before transforming into Akamaru. He lowered the wall and walked over to the dog before forming a crystal needle and placing it to the dog's neck.

"Surrender or you will be down a dancing partner." Naruto said coldly. Most of the Genin were rather perturbed by his sudden change in attitude, none more than Haku. _'He wouldn't...'_ She thought to herself. Naruto then raised his hand and grabbed the needle like a knife, gradually increasing his height before stopping for a few seconds at his peak.

"Last chance Kiba." He said, getting no reaction. He then shrugged and swung his arm down causing Kiba to shout for him to stop. He then stabbed the needle into the ground right by the dog's head. "Well?" He said.

"I forfeit! Just stop!" Kiba shouted frantically. Naruto just smirked devilishly before forcing his cursed seal to retract and turning his needle into dust. He then walked over to Kiba and clicked his fingers, breaking him free of the situation he found himself in.

"Winner by forfeit, Naruto Uzumaki." Hayate said, making Naruto smile and offer his hand to Kiba.

"No hard feelings?" He said cautiously. Kiba just frowned for a few moments before sighing.

"Yeah." He said with a slight smirk and grabbing Naruto's hand. They shook hands before returning to the overlook. Naruto decided walking was too mainstream so he **Shunshin'd** in a shower of crystal shards right up to his team, much to the surprise of everyone else.

"Yo." He said.

**-****End-**

**I feel I portrayed Naruto correctly during that fight, if a little overpowered. Oh well, I never thought Kiba was the strongest person to be honest. He got beaten by Naruto in canon when he had chakra problems.**

**Anyway... Review, Follow, Favourite etc. **

**LiamMorg. Out.**

**Ja Ne!**

**Due to all the short paragraphs this is my longest appearing chapter... I think it may be the longest overall too.**


	11. The Painful Truth

**I don't own Naruto, if I did then I'd think up all sorts of crazy techniques and use them once only. Good example: Kirin. What happened to this jutsu? Your guess is as good as mine, 'cause you'll never know.**

**This chapter is the end of the preliminaries and various other things. I can get back to writing some mildly original stuff. **

**Also I would just like to say: Stop hounding me about the cursed seal. I have plans for it, so don't worry about it.**

**Quote of the day/chapter: "Even if you are refused help by another, you must still be ready to help them when they need it, else you will be little better than they are." **

**Chapter 11: The Painful Truth**

**-Start-**

"_Winner by forfeit, Naruto Uzumaki." Hayate said, making Naruto smile and offer his hand to Kiba. _

"_No hard feelings?" He said cautiously. Kiba just frowned for a few moments before sighing._

"_Yeah." He said with a slight smirk and grabbing Naruto's hand. They shook hands before returning to the overlook. Naruto decided walking was too mainstream so he **Shunshin'd** in a shower of crystal shards right up to his team, much to the surprise of everyone else._

"_Yo." He said._

The various other Genin and Jounin around him were just looking at him with wide eyes. None could believe what they had just seen, the dead last of the academy completely crushed a rather skilled classmate with little effort. He'd displayed techniques far above his level and even a **Kekkei Genkai **that many of them had never even heard of. To say this was an unexpected turn of events was putting it as lightly as possible.

Asuma turned to Kakashi to see what he assumed was a smug smile, if the way the mask was creased was any indication. He furrowed his brows at the man before speaking.

"Kakashi, what did you do to your students? They told me after that C-rank mission to Wave that you'd barely taught them anything, so how did they get to this level so quick? Especially Naruto." He enquired, earning the attention of most of the other Genin and Jounin around them. Kakashi merely shrugged before replying.

"Not much, I just started training them seriously. It helps when you have two prodigies and someone who'd obviously been taught rather well prior to it." He said casually, inwardly loving the expressions of those around him.

Kurenai picked up on his wording and decided to question him on it. "Two prodigies? One is Sasuke I assume, but who is the other?" She asked, getting Kakashi's attention. The man just gave her an eye-smile and turned to Naruto.

"Why Naruto, of course." He said happily. The other Genin looked at the man like he'd gained a second head.

"The dead last of the class was a prodigy? You expect us to believe that?" Ino screeched out. Naruto just shook his head with a sigh.

"You didn't notice, I take it?" He said, getting a questioning gaze from the other blond. "I was pretty much sabotaged during the academy for... certain reasons... that I cannot go into. If I had been informed that my extremely high chakra capacity made it impossible for me to make a standard clone then I would've been fine." He continued, getting a raised eyebrow from the girl.

"What do you mean extremely high chakra capacity, we're Genin, you shouldn't have enough to completely prevent you using a jutsu!" She replied. Naruto just shook his head and pulled a book out of his pouch before flicking through a few pages.

"Let's see here... Ah, here we are. _'__...as a clan that originated from within the Senju clan the Uzumaki were known to have very high chakra reserves, higher than the Senju themselves possessed. This was known to be the reason for the longevity of members of the clan along with the reason for their __high__ stamina. __Many members of the clan even possessed chakra so strong it could manifest physically.__'_Does that answer you question Ino?" He said. The girl just nodded dumbly while Shikamaru decided to question something.

"Did you just say the Uzumaki were related to the Senju?" Shikamaru said, getting a nod. "Then... shouldn't your clan be at least taught about to the public? The Senju were basically royalty in the village, any relatives should be well known." He said. Naruto just placed his hand in a thinking pose before replying.

"I won't pretend to know the reason why they were not publicly known, nor why I wasn't told of my clan status until I accidentally learned about them... thanks for that again Haku-chan..." He said, turning to Haku as he finished. She blushed slightly and nodded. "... I assume the reason was because my clan were destroyed because they were feared, so knowledge of the survival of the clan could leak out." He said, earning a nod from Shikamaru.

Asuma walked near Kakashi before speaking quietly to him. "I feel a little bad for Naruto..." He said, getting a confused expression from Kakashi. "He hasn't had a great life, and now he seems intelligent and mature past his age. He never really got to live as a normal person." Asuma said, getting a slight shake of the head from Kakashi.

"That's true, but he's really a great kid. He can still laugh and joke and generally be a kid despite everything that's happened to him. _His father would be proud._" Kakashi replied, whispering the last part to himself.

"Back on topic..." Neji said, surprising everyone after his long bout of silence. "What exactly is it about you that makes you a prodigy?" He said calmly. Naruto replied just as calmly.

"While I don't like to list my skills since I always sound like I'm bragging... the reason is pretty simple. I'm basically a genius..." He said, getting snorts from his classmates. "...if I am actually taught something properly I will soak it up easily, and I have no trouble learning new jutsu or skills." He said. Kakashi decided to back this up with a fact.

"You all know about the **Kage Bushin no Jutsu** right?" He said, getting varying reactions. "Well it is an B-rank jutsu. Naruto here learned it in a few hours with no help." He said, getting more surprised reactions while Shikamaru just threw his arms up in the air before speaking.

"I give up!" He shouted. "Trying to understand how good you really are is _WAY_ too troublesome for me." He finished, getting nods from a few others around them. Naruto just smirked a little at this, having beaten the brain of the lazy genius.

Once all the other Genin had moved away from Team 7 Haku decided to speak with her blond friend. "That was a really great match Naruto-kun." She said happily, earning a foxy grin from the blond.

"Thanks Haku-chan!" He said with a large smile, before continuing. "I'm a bit disappointed I had to use my **Kekkei Genkai**... I was hoping to keep it until the finals, but I'll manage." He said with a small frown. Haku just shook her head at the answer. _'He beat his opponent with barely any injuries and he__'__s still complaining.' _She thought to herself with amusement.

She shook her head at her blond friend, there was no contemplating his actions. His status as the most unpredictable knuckle-head ninja seemed well earned, though knuckle-head could be removed from the title now seeing as how he was actually rather intelligent. She closed her eyes with a small smile and tilted her head a little before replying.

"Well, maybe I'll be able to keep mine for the finals, then I'll have beaten you ne?" Haku taunted. Naruto's frown instantly became a large smirk. He was easy to cheer up with a challenge, that would likely never change. She couldn't help but think of his actions during combat, he always seemed colder... more cruel, if only a bit. It didn't take a genius to tell why, since it started right after Sakura's injury. Haku was worried this may deepen if it went unchecked, unfortunately with intelligence came more capacity for guilt and self loathing.

The blond finally replied to her little taunt, breaking the Yuki out of her trance. "I guess you would've, but then again my opponent was actually pretty good. You could get lucky." Naruto responded, earning a small but thoughtful nod from the girl. Then she thought about who was left. _'Let's see, two Rookies which are Ch__ōji and Hinata, Gaara of Suna, Dosu of Oto and Rock Lee of Team Guy... I don't really think any of them are weak, except maybe Chōji.' _She thought to herself.

"There aren't really many simple opponents left you know." Sasuke threw in, earning a small nod from the blond while he closed his eyes in contemplation. Then he looked over to Lee who gave him a nice guy pose, earning a sweat-drop from the blond. He shook his head before looking at Gaara, who was staring at him like a hawk, waiting to catch its prey between its talons. He unconsciously shivered from the bloodthirsty stare.

_'Kurama, you said the Ichibi was the weakest of the Bijuu right?' _The blond asked the massive fox residing in his stomach. The fox took a while before letting out a slightly sleepy snort.

"_**Must you wake me for such inane prattle?" **_The giant fox snapped, before sighing and giving a small pause before responding. **_"Yes, Shukaku is the weakest Bijuu, why do you ask?"_** It said, earning a nod in response.

"_If it's the weakest of the Bijuu, why does Gaara unnerve me so much? Shouldn't I be scaring him to death?"_ Naruto asked the fox, which allowed a silence to fall as it pondered the question.

"_**To get around its weakness, Shukaku would always trick it's host into giving it access to the host's body at a young age, usually through the guise of a loved one." **_The fox said, giving the blond a pause to take this in before continuing. **_"As such, it can allow the host to gain great control over its powers, while slowly driving them insane. See those black marks around his eyes? He likely hasn't slept in years." _**Kurama replied, making the blond Jinchuuriki widen his eyes in surprise.

"_So, if I was able to control your power for a long period of time, I would be very powerful then." _Naruto stated, earning a small huff from his prisoner. The fox unlike Shukaku didn't give out it's power like candy, his power was earned.

"_**Yes, but no Jinchuuriki of mine has ever commanded my full power. You have actually been slowly amassing my chakra your whole life. The seal you bear slowly filters my chakra into your own." **_Kurama stated, Naruto was surprised that the seal on him would do such a thing. As the strongest of the Bijuu, did the Yondaime Hokage really think it safe to put such a potentially dangerous seal on a child that would have no parental guidance?

"_Interesting. So over time I will naturally become attuned to your power; Have full control over it without trying?" _Naruto said, earning a small snort of approval from the fox.

"_**Unfortunately yes. Though to be honest, I would probably give you access to it before that time comes." **_Kurama stated, causing Naruto to be rather taken aback by the obvious act of either trust or submission by his sealed companion.

"_Really? Why?"_ He blurted out. Sasuke and Haku were taking note of his changing expressions and small movements as though in a conversation. Sasuke thought he had lost his mind while Haku could guess what was happening, and was not exactly happy about it.

"_**Him."**_ The fox stated vaguely before continuing. **_"I won't tell you the full story right now, but at the moment I would not be safe without a host plain and simple. His eyes would bind me once more." _**Kurama continued, once again causing the blond to become rather confused. He shrugged a little before cutting his mental link; his curiosity sated for the moment. He had plenty to think about later though.

He turned to his side and saw his teammates looking at him. Sasuke was just gazing at him inquiringly, trying to figure out what he was thinking about. Haku was looking at him evenly for the most part, but there was a glint of concern in her eyes that was quickly removed when she closed her eyes and looked straight over the railing, her hands linked over her groin. Naruto decided he should just stay quiet for now. _'After this part of the exam, I will tell Sasuke about Kurama. I've waited long enough.'_ He thought to himself.

Hayate coughed again as the board flickered to life and began to cycle through names once more. Everyone fastened their eyes onto the board while a certain bowl cut haired Genin was praying for it to be his turn. Naruto gazed over to his female teammate to see she looked uneasy, before he peered over at Gaara to see his crazed stare once more. Sighing, he placed his hand gently on her shoulder, earning her attention before giving her a reassuring smile and nod. She returned the gesture in appreciation before the board stopped on Haku Yuki and Hinata Hyūga.

Naruto just face-palmed hard, while Hinata gained a slight smirk and Haku sighed lowly. _'Great, I get paired up with the one person who seems to really dislike me. Oh well, better than that Gaara guy.'_ Haku thought to herself. Meanwhile Hinata was having thoughts that many people would likely have guessed.

_'Yes! I can finally show everyone how much I've changed and take HER down a peg or two... just you watch Naruto-kun, you'll see I'm better for you than she is!" _Hinata thought to herself a little madly, obviously having been waiting for this chance for a while now. Both competitors made their way down to the arena, Haku getting encouragement from her team and Hinata getting the same.

Naruto's smile immediately faded as Haku looked away from him and was replaced by a slightly irritated frown _'This was a bad match up... but why does Hinata dislike Haku-chan so much? I can't understand it...'_ He thought to himself, desperately trying to make sense of everything. Kurama simply sighed in defeat, he'd waited long enough.

"_**OK! I give up, I'll tell you the reason you oblivious moron!"**_ The fox bellowed at Naruto, who covered his ears in the real world which made him look slightly crazy. He then huffed slightly as he retracted his arms. **_"She wants you, idiot. She's obviously jealous of your mate for spending so much time around you."_** Kurama continued, making Naruto furrow his brows.

"_There you go calling her my mate again... and what do you mean Hinata 'wants' me?' _Naruto questioned, making the fox groan in irritation.

"_**She wants you, as in she wants to be with you." **_The fox said, before clearing up what it meant.**_ "What's the word you mortals use... ah, she wants to be your... girlfriend."_** The fox continued, making Naruto drop his jaw slightly before fixing himself, as to not appear any more insane than he already did.

"_That... actually makes a lot of sense."_ Naruto said. It definitely cleared up why she would always act so nervous around him, though he didn't exactly understand it. Her change in personality hadn't changed her enough to approach him about it, of course.

Meanwhile outside Naruto's inner conversation, Hinata and Haku were making their way down to the arena. Kurenai was concerned about the way Hinata was acting... she'd always had a soft spot for the Hyūga heiress, but she had changed considerably recently. The way she was staring at Haku made Kurenai worry that she'd try something serious.

The two Kunoichi arrived in the arena, standing across from one another while Hayate stood between them, giving them a moment to ready themselves before the battle begun. Haku took a deep breath and got into 'battle mode', a state of mind solely for combat that Zabuza had drilled into her, so that her kinder nature would not hinder her efficiency. Hinata simply scowled and at the calm and calculating look on her opponent's face.

"So we finally get a chance to fight then..." Hinata said, causing Haku's eyebrows to twitch upwards slightly before she righted herself. "...then he'll see who's better for him!" She continued. This time Haku did furrow her brows slightly, a small frown adorning her face.

"What are you talking about?" Haku asked, earning a snort from Hinata.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about, you came here from nowhere and try to steal Naruto-kun from me!" She shouted out, earning various reactions from around the arena. Most of the Rookie 9 who weren't oblivious like Naruto just took on varying expressions, from surprise to annoyance. The other Genin in the room didn't particularly care, the Jounin-sensei were very surprised but none more than Naruto.

"Wait WHAT?!" He shouted out, making everyone turn to him with expressions ranging from 'Are you serious' to apologetic smiles. Despite what they were thinking, he wasn't shocked that Hinata considered him hers... he was shocked that she thought Haku thought of him in that way. He couldn't quite place it, but the idea of it being true made him feel warm.

Hinata just stayed quiet, this match would show him what she wanted him to see, that she was strong and worthy of him. The only one standing between them was Haku... the mere thought of said girl made Hinata's blood boil. _'She shows up from nowhere and steals him from me, I'll show her who he belongs with.' _

Hayate let out a sigh of irritation at the obvious one sided relationship going on. He knew that this match wouldn't be just a match for the pale eyed girl, but a test of her devotion. Unfortunately the board had chosen and the matches couldn't be switched.

He sighed once more before raising his hand. "Match 8, Hinata Hyūga VS Haku Yuki... Haijime!" He called out, before moving back as to avoid the crossfire.

**-Haku VS Hinata-**

As soon as the match started both fighters sprung into action. Hinata's **Byakugan** surged to life; veins erupting around her eyes as she charged towards the last Yuki. Haku took the chance to jump back, going through hand signs with her left hand while pulling out some senbon with her right. She then threw her senbon at Hinata to distract the girl, which resulted in Hinata swatting the senbon out of the air before calling out her jutsu.

"**Suiton: Mizurappa!" **Haku called out, placing her hand in from of her face as though playing a trumpet before a mass of water surged from her mouth and through her hand towards Hinata. The Hyūga heiress scowled at this before leaping out of the way. Haku simply frowned a little before grabbing a few more senbons.

Hinata took that moment to jump through the slight fog created by the water jutsu, her arm pulled back with her palm facing Haku, and attempted to thrust her hand into Haku's chest. Haku dodged the blow, grabbing a senbon in a stabbing position while throwing the senbon she had already grabbed. Hinata deftly avoided the senbon before she was placed on the defensive by Haku's fast and precise stabs – not unlike the Hyūga fighting style.

Haku stabbed forward at her opponent's stomach, hoping to end the match quickly. Hinata wouldn't have it and simply weaved around it, thrusting two fingers forward towards Haku's shoulder. Haku retaliated by pushing the hand aside and giving Hinata a quick high kick to her stomach, throwing her back a small distance onto her back.

Naruto was in a small dilemma, he wanted to cheer for his teammate but didn't know if he should due to Hinata's... strange fixation on him. He wasn't an idiot, he knew that attraction, love and the sort were all perfectly normal and a part of every person's life... what wasn't normal however was claiming someone you've barely spoken to 'yours'. Hinata could have approached him about this, but instead decided to make a public ordeal of it. He sighed and decided upon silence.

Haku was reading her opponent rather well and based on her analysis she had a pretty good chance of winning this fight. _'It seems the Hyūga clan are essentially Taijutsu exclusive... the clan pride prevents them from learning normal Ninjutsu. This will be a great disadvantage, but I still must be careful of her attacks... at close range she can easily defeat me.' _Haku thought to herself, sizing up her opponent as she rose from the ground a small distance away.

The girl scowled slightly at Haku's even gaze. Focusing her chakra on the water left on the ground by Haku's **Suiton** jutsu, Hinata began to form small needles of water.

"**Mizu Hari! (Water Needle!)"** She called out as the needles began to fly at Haku who grabbed a senbon in each hand and began to block and dodge the various water needles heading towards her. Hinata took the opportunity to charge in towards the last Yuki who was starting to gain noticeable tear on her outfit due to the speed of the needles and their small size causing them to be very hard to counter.

As Hinata reached her opponent she threw a single finger towards Haku's shoulder, which connected and caused her to wince in pain before kicking out, causing Hinata to fall back. Haku held her shoulder and began to shake her arm to regain motor function. She succeeded for the most part, having the majority of her control back.

"That was a nice move Hinata, now I'll show you something better." Haku said evenly, going through one handed seals. _**"Sensatsu Suishō (Thousand Flying Water Needles of Death)"**_ she thought to herself, as thousands of tiny water needles materialized from the water around them and the air itself. Hinata was caught off guard by the sudden attack and could not escape before the needles began to rain down upon her.

Haku just stood motionless as Hinata screamed in pain; her outfit being torn to shreds and wounds accumulating quickly across her form. As the techniques came to a close, Hinata fell to her knees and began to breath heavily; panting out in relief and pain. Haku simply remained motionless and stoic as she took a breather.

"I... won't lose... to you!" Hinata growled out as she slowly rose to her feet. Haku let a small frown adorn her face as she took on a slightly sad expression. She did not like harming others, especially those who were already at a disadvantage... which Hinata was definitely at right now. She wished for the girl to just forfeit.

"Why do you try so hard for him?" Haku asked the girl, catching her off guard. "Why couldn't you earn his affection by just being there for him, rather than this? Did you ever even confront him about your feelings?" Haku asked the girl, wanting to drill into her the silliness and near insanity of her actions.

"I... I just want him... to acknowledge me..." She said softly, her anger draining away and being replaced by sadness. Haku just gave her a small smile and decided to continue.

"Then you should seek that acknowledgement in a better way, it means little to be acknowledged as a fighter, you want to be seen as a person." Haku said, honestly not happy that she was essentially telling the girl how to approach the person she cared for. She hoped Naruto would turn the girl down, so she could be with him instead. _'Are we really so different, me and Hinata? We both want the same guy, for the same reasons... I can't really blame her.'_ Haku thought to herself as she readied herself for the end of the fight.

"Now, will you forfeit?" Haku said, getting a small glare in return.

"No. I am not a weakling! I can still win this!" She said, realising Haku had closed the distance between them during their little heart to heart. "You're within the field of my divination!" She said, confusing Haku who took a defensive stance and began to ready hand signs.

"**Hakke Sannjūni Shō! (Eight Trigrams Thirty-Two Palms!)"** She called out as she ran towards Haku and thrust towards her. As she arrived, Haku managed to finish her own set of hand signs and called out her own jutsu.

"**Hyōton: Koorino Doomu! (Ice Release: Ice Dome!)"** She said, as a dome of ice almost immediately formed around her as Hinata came in for the kill.

"Two Palms!" Hinata shouted, as she struck the dome twice, making no obvious damage.

"Four Palms!" She continued, causing a small crack to form on the dome.

"Eight Palms!" She said, causing the crack to expand slightly.

"Sixteen Palms!" She said, further deepening the cracks.

"**Hakke Sannjūni Sho!**" She finished, striking the dome in a flurry of blows which caused the front of the dome to break on the last hit. Haku's eyes widened at the revelation that Hinata was skilled enough to break her ice. _'She certainly is strong... you were a fine opponent Hinata'_ Haku thought to herself as she fired another **Suiton: Mizurappa **through the gap in the dome which threw Hinata into a wall. She groaned as she attempted to rise, only to fall back to the ground.

"Proctor, I cannot continue." Hinata groaned out. Hayate smiled at the girl's determination before declaring Haku the winner. Naruto smiled at his teammate's victory but couldn't help but frown as he realised what he needed to do.

**-After the Match-**

As the medics carried Hinata away Haku made her way back up to the stands to see more bewildered Genin and Jounin staring at both her and Kakashi. Asuma sighed and placed his head in the palm of his hand before speaking.

"Seriously Kakashi? A team of bloodline users? Is that even fair...?" He said, earning a small chuckle from Kakashi and Kurenai. Kurenai – while upset her student lost – was still proud of the talent she displayed.

"What can I say Asuma? I got lucky, I think this may be the first ever Genin bloodline team." He said with a signature eye-smile that made Asuma sweat-drop before waving his hand dismissively as though wiping his hands of the topic.

Naruto turned to his female teammate and gave her a large smile. "Nice match Haku-chan, I'll admit I didn't expect you to need to use your bloodline, but I guess there was no avoiding it was there..." He said, getting a small nod from Haku.

"She was stronger than I thought, she was no pushover." She replied, getting a nod from both her teammates. Naruto took on a thoughtful pose before turning to Kakashi and his team to speak.

"Hey, Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto said, getting the man's attention. "Would it be okay for me to go see Hinata? I think we need to talk." He said seriously, making the man nod slightly in acceptance. Naruto gave him a slightly forced smile before turning to his team.

"I'll be back soon enough, if I miss the next match tell me how it goes okay?" He said, getting a smirk and nod from Sasuke and a slight frown from Haku. He sighed and walked away, knowing it likely wasn't going to be a pleasant conversation. The board landed on Gaara VS Rock Lee right as he left the room.

As he walked the halls of the tower he thought over what he wanted to say to the girl. _'Well, what can I say? I barely know you and don't feel the same way? Yeah, that'll go well... why couldn't she have told me about this sooner, then I could've dealt with it...'_ Naruto thought to himself.

He may have been oblivious when it came to a girl's feelings, but he was no fool once he knew about them, He knew he had to handle this carefully, to spare her heartbreak... but was that even an option? She obviously admired the blond more than he realized, so there was little chance of this going smoothly.

"_I don't suppose you have any advice for me Kurama?"_ Naruto asked his furry companion. He heard an amused snort from within his mind before the fox replied.

"_**As if! This is going to be comedy gold, as if I'd ruin it!"**_ The fox retorted, earning a scowl from the blond. _'Damn foxes and their damn senses of humour...'_ Naruto thought to himself as he continued his walk to the infirmary.

As he walked he pondered his recent experiences and those of the past. The feeling of affection; of love... it was not something the blond knew well. There were very few who had cared for him truly in his life. There was Hiruzen Sarutobi; The Sandaime Hokage, his Genin team, Haku... the thought of which made him happier instantly. He paused in his stride, his gaze fixed in front of him... though his mind was elsewhere.

The impossible girl he'd met in Wave held such mystery to the blond... he'd known her for a shorter period of time than anyone else he considered a friend, yet her existence meant so much to him. She'd been his enemy... she'd tried to kill his friends, yet they'd still managed to change her fate into something brighter.

A smile broke out across his face as he remembered how they'd comforted each other in their hours of need. When Haku had told him of her parents and what her father did, he was there for her. When he learned of his clan and went through his mother's possessions she was there for him. The two had done more for each other than any outsider would believe; they were closer than they should be.

Then his thoughts drifted to their heart-to-heart in the forest of death and the sensation he felt just talking to her... and the kiss on the cheek she gave him as she left that night. He widened his eyes in shock and surprise; his mouth opening wide as a fish as he finally realized what this meant. _'I think I like Haku-chan... as something... more...'_ He thought to himself, before his smile returned.

It didn't last long however as he knew he had to deal with Hinata. _'Well.. I have a reason to reject her now at least... I like Haku-chan. God, it seems so obvious now.'_ He thought to himself in mock annoyance at his own oblivious nature. Then he remembered the last person who had cared for him... flashes of light blue hair in a ponytail coming to centre stage. _'I haven't seen you in years... Itoko. Where did you go?' _He thought to himself sadly.

He resumed his stride and eventually came to the door of the infirmary. He turned to the side to see a woman standing beside the door looking at him with an inquisitive stare. He raised an eyebrow slightly at the way she was looking at him before speaking up.

"Excuse me miss, is Hinata Hyūga able to see visitors right now?" He said, getting a slight smirk from the woman as she nodded. He smiled at her and gave her a slight bow before walking in. He saw many different curtains hiding the injured Genin behind them. There was a single curtain open, behind which was Hinata. He took a deep breath to ready himself as he walked over to her.

Hinata was just feeling down, she'd not only failed to prove herself but her opponent had actually taken the liberty to help her with her problems... how could she continue to hate the girl now? She sighed softly before she heard footsteps. She turned to see a certain whiskered blond walking towards her, his hands fidgeting nervously with the bottom of his jacket as he walked towards her. She hid under her blanket slightly, scared to speak with him after he loud and public declaration.

He finally reached her bed, seeing a chair beside it he sat down and stayed silent for a few moments, simply staring at the ground while collecting his thoughts. Hinata's mind was in turmoil, she had no idea what he was here to say, what if he accepted her advances... or what if he denied her?

"Hey Hinata." He started. _'Yeah, great start genius. Why do emotions have to be so complicated? Damn it...'_ He said mentally, berating his unfamiliarity with situations such things as he was doing right now.

"H-hey... Naruto-kun." She replied, mentally patting herself on the back for only stuttering once under the very private circumstances they were in. He gave her a small smile before rising to pull the curtain around them so nobody would see what happened, just in case she took the news badly.

"I think we need to talk about... what you want with me... for us." Naruto said, unsure how to phrase what he was saying. She gave him a slightly nervous nod as she knew it was time to come clean or hold her piece.

"You're right Naruto-kun..." She said, taking a deep breath before continuing. "...the truth is... I love you." She said, making Naruto do two things. Stop breathing and almost he regained his composure he mentally cursed. _'Crap. She is not going to be happy when I tell her the truth.'_ Naruto thought to himself.

"Why?" He asked. For some reason, he couldn't help but question why she felt this way... in a way it was both cruel and selfish to get her to spill her heart only to tell her he didn't feel the same, but as an emotionally shunned individual he couldn't help but bask in any declaration of affection someone gave him.

"W-well..." She stuttered out, not expecting having to spill this. "...it started back when we were both small kids and I was getting bullied by three kids I accidentally ran into... you showed up and told them to leave me alone and despite the fact they attacked you instead you still didn't care." She said softly, smiling warmly at him while remembering that event. He nodded with a small smile, now remembering that event.

"That was you? It was so long ago... I can barely remember it." He said almost thoughtlessly, as though lost in memory. She sighed happily before continuing.

"Ever since that day I've always admired you... despite what people say or do to you... you never gave up. You always came back and believed in yourself. I grew to admire and eventually love how you were. I guess it sounds ridiculous, but that's how it happened." She finished. The blond smiled at this, the pale-eyed girl truly did care for him... unfortunately that made this all the more difficult to do.

"Then this is going to be much harder than I thought..." He said with a sad frown and apologetic look. "Hinata... I don't feel the same." He said plainly, making the girl freeze in terror. She'd lain her heart out for him, and she'd been rejected. She felt tears welling up and breaking free but no sobs escaped her mouth. She was far too shocked to make a sound. Despite everything, she was surprised when Naruto actually began to release a few tears alongside her.

"I'm sorry." He said sadly. "I'm so sorry, but we're just not for each other." He continued, looking genuinely upset that he had to do this to her. As he said this, she completely broke down; sobbing relentlessly. Some medics entered after hearing her to see Naruto hugging her comfortingly. He wordlessly told them everything was fine and they nodded before leaving. They stayed like this until she finally calmed down, though her heart felt heavy.

The young heiress smiled wistfully as they separated. "So... y-you h-have someone el-else then?" She hiccuped out, her sobs not quite done. He just frowned sadly before nodding at her. He was surprised when she just hugged him before whispering to him. "Know that I'll always love you... if it doesn't work out." She said, making him pull back.

"You shouldn't continue to live waiting for me. Try to move on... you deserve happiness." He said with a genuine smile. She couldn't help but return the smile and nod wordlessly. She'd said enough, this couldn't be changed... she may as well try to find someone else, or at least get over Naruto. He got up and placed his hand on her shoulder for a few seconds before removing it and pulling the curtain away to leave, pulling it back to hide Hinata's tear stained face from the others in the room.

He felt horrible walking back to the arena. He felt as though he had ruined someone's entire life; shattered their very existence. He was sickened by the thought of Hinata being unable to move on and living in depression for the rest of her days. _'I'm overreacting... I wasn't really a romantic interest to her, I was an idol... a symbol of confidence and determination. She'll be fine...' _He mentally reassured himself.

"_Enjoy the show Kurama?" _Naruto snapped at his Bijuu companion. The beast was rather taken aback by his tone but just snarled before answering.

"_**Not really. It's surprising how awkward these things can be... I expected more delicious agony. Oh well, I got enough." **_The age old Bijuu replied. Naruto just snorted in annoyance at Kurama and his completely heartless nature.

"_One of these days we're going to work on your sympathetic side..."_ Naruto said off-handedly. The fox didn't reply but was very surprised his host wanted to change him for the better, rather than just treat him as a burden for his life. _**'He truly is different, I'll give him that.'**_ Kurama thought to himself.

Naruto paused as he was nearing the arena once more when he heard a loud cry of pain from within said location. He tentatively opened the door to the arena; ensuring whatever caused the cry would not catch him in the crossfire. As he took in the appearance of the room he saw it highly damaged and filled with scattered sand. Then his eyes rested on Lee, who looked as though he had his limbs crushed. _'Damn, I missed a big fight.'_ The blond thought to himself before taking in the expressions of the viewers, horror and anger being the most common ones around the room.

Naruto quickly **Shunshin'd** up to the observation area, not wanting to interrupt the moment between Lee and Guy. He came up to see many of his fellow rookies with looks of shock on their faces and a small scowl on others. Haku just looked over to him and gave him a weak smile, not really able to be happy with recent events.

"So... Seems I missed something bad. What happened?" Naruto asked quietly, grasping the atmosphere. Instead of his teammates Kakashi decided to intervene.

"Well, Lee fought Gaara as I'm sure you know. Lee used some ridiculous speed to get around Gaara's sand... which seemed to automatically defend him from any blows. He eventually resorted to using **Hachimon (Eight Gates)**..." The masked Jounin said, making Naruto widen his eyes.

"He can open the gates!?" Naruto all but shouted, earning a nod from his teacher. "How many did he open?" He asked, genuinely worried about the green-clad Taijutsu exclusive ninja. Kakashi closed his eye a little, which was essentially a frown for the man.

"Five." He said, making Naruto drop his jaw. _'Unbelievable. Gaara was able to not only survive, but win against an opponent who opened five of the __**Hachimon**__!" _Naruto thought to himself. Then he just frowned a little.

"I guess we can see the power of a Jinchūriki." Naruto said somewhat absently, making Kakashi nearly fall over with surprise.

"He's a Jinchūriki!?" Kakashi shouted, making all the other Jounin look over at him with shock, while the Genin were a little confused about what they were talking about. Naruto began to sweat under their gaze, knowing that he couldn't talk himself out of this.

Naruto decided to just nod in a subtle fashion to avoid any issues that could arise. Kakashi as a trained professional was able to catch this but very few of the Genin did. Unfortunately for Naruto, his raven-haired teammate was one of those few.

"What's a Jinchūriki?" Sasuke whispered to Naruto, who immediately paled slightly.

"I'll... tell you after the preliminaries are over." The blond replied with a bit of a choke. He noticed none of the others were questioning him about it and breathed a sigh of relief before turning to his teacher and giving him a look that said 'I can explain'. The man simply narrowed his eye before turning away.

During their little conversation, Chōji and Dosu were selected by the board of destiny to fight last... not that the board was necessary. It was a rather disappointing fight, Chōji rolled around as a giant ball while Dosu dodged him until he hit a wall and stopped. Dosu then thrust his gauntlet into the giant Genin causing his entire form to vibrate violently and shaking him out of his transformation and winning the match for Dosu.

Naruto sighed at the fight, clearly Chōji was not prepared for those who could dodge his human boulder technique, since he had no alternate plan against his opponent. Hayate coughed a little as he walked forward to the centre of the arena.

"That concludes the Third Exam's Preliminary matches..." He said, waving his hand. "...to those of you who have made it to the main matches... congratulations." He finished, giving the Hokage a chance to take the stage so to speak.

"I will now begin the explanation for the main matches." The elderly man said. "Your main matches will be shown in front of everyone. This is to allow you to show your abilities as your county''s representatives. Therefore, there will be a month hiatus before we begin the final matches." He continued. Naruto nodded and spoke up.

"I see..." He started, getting the attention of those around him. "...you want to give village leaders and influential figures like Daimyo's time to arrive to see the matches, right?" He said calmly. The other Genin raised an eyebrow or two while the smarter ones nodded. The Hokage smiled before continuing.

"Very good Naruto." He said, making Naruto smile slightly at the praise. "That is the exact reason. Since this is a very public event, we need to allow the important individuals such as other Kage's and Daimyo's their time to arrive." He continued, making everyone nod.

"However, there is one other reason..." He said, catching the attention of the Genin. "...the reason is to allow you – the candidates – time to train and ready yourselves for those you are up against." He said, making everyone nod once more. Naruto looked towards his fellow Jinchūriki with a slight scowl. _'I hope I don't have to fight him right off the bat, it'll likely be a close fight.' _He thought to himself. Haku and Sasuke looked at Naruto for varying reasons.

_'I hope we don't have to fight very early, I'm not sure if I can go all out on him...' _Haku thought to herself with a small frown. She was well aware of her feelings and knew they would likely get in the way if they needed to fight. Zabuza wasn't wrong about feelings being a weakness on the battlefield... but they were necessary off it, as a person could become insane without the ability to care for others or be cared for.

_'If we fight in the last round, I can finally discover who is really the better of us, Naruto. I may not be as power hungry as I once way, but you are still my rival. I will see which of us is truly the better.' _Sasuke thought to himself. He may not have noticed it, but not once did he actually think of beating his blond teammate, only seeing which of them was stronger. He had changed more than even he himself noticed.

"There is – however – something we need to discuss before I dismiss you all." The elderly Hokage said. "You will all need to take a piece of paper from the box Anko here is holding." He continued, making them all nod. As Anko went around and gave one to each of them, Ibiki raised a clipboard.

"Okay, everyone got one?" He said, earning nods from all around. "Now, tell me what number you have, starting from the lowest and up." He said, as everyone looked down at their paper and Naruto raised his head to speak.

(AN: Didn't do left to right because I knew I'd confuse myself.)

"One." Naruto said, as Neji raised his head.

"Two." Neji said, making Gaara shift.

"Three." Gaara said, making Sasuke frown slightly.

"Four" Sasuke said, as Kankuro closed one eye and raised his head.

"Five." Kankuro said, making Shino's eyebrow twitch ever so slightly.

"Six." Shino said, making Temari grin a little.

"Seven." Temari said, making Shikamaru say something along the lines of 'troublesome'.

"Eight." Shikamaru said, making Dosu chuckle a little

"Nine." Dosu said, making Haku shake her head.

"Ten." Haku said.

"We will now tell you the match ups for the tournament." The Hokage said, making almost everyone jump in surprise. Naruto just raised an eyebrow and sighed.

"Really? That was surprising to you guys? What else would some random numbers be for?" He said almost sarcastically, earning a death glare from Neji which he returned. _'If he barks on about fate during out fight I am SO kicking his ass.' _The blond thought to himself.

"Ibiki, show the match ups." The Hokage said, as Ibiki flipped his clipboard around.

Match 1: Naruto VS Neji.

Match 2: Gaara VS Sasuke.

Match 3: Kankuro VS Shino.

Match 4: Temari VS Shikamaru.

Match 5: Dosu VS Haku.

Match 6: Match 1 victor VS Match 2 victor.

Match 7: Special three way battle between Match 3 victor, Match 4 victor and Match 5 victor.

Match 8: Match 6 victor VS Match 7 victor.

(AN: The lack of a double disqualification is ruining the finals plan, damn it all... Then again Gaara will ruin it, so who cares?)

Naruto smiled a little, already having guessed what opponent he was having. Neji glared at him a little. Sasuke smirked over at Gaara who simply stood like a statue. Kankuro grinned at Shino who also stood like a statue. Temari gained a tick mark hearing Shikamaru saying something sexist and Dosu simply eye-smiled at Haku who shivered under his creepy look.

"I have one question..." Shikamaru said, earning a 'Mmm' sound from the Hokage. "...if it's a tournament, that means there's only one winner, right? So only one person can become a Chunnin?" He asked, his finger raised into the air.

"No, the tournament style is just to amuse the crowd. The judges and Kage's will decide the promotions, as strength alone is not enough to become a Chunnin. You need to display sufficient skills in all categories to become Chunnin." The Hokage replied, earning nods from all around. Temari then piped up.

"So, everyone here could become a Chunnin?" She asked, getting a nod from the Hokage before he began to elaborate.

"Yes, but there is also the possibility that none of you will become Chunnin you see." He replied in an almost sage-like fashion. Temari just nodded while a certain someone considered it 'troublesome'.

"And that is all, I believe." He said, turning to his selected proctors who all nodded at him. "Then we are adjourned until next month." He said with finality. Naruto immediately smiled at this before turning away to leave, his team and the other Genin following him.

As they left the Forest of Death Naruto turned to his team and teacher before speaking. "So, Kakashi-sensei, how is this going to work?" He asked, slightly confusing the man. "You know what I mean, all three of us passed but you can't train us all or we'll know each other's skills during the exam." He said as though it was simple. Kakashi just gave a small eye-smile at the improvements the blond had made.

"You're correct Naruto... I was thinking of taking Sasuke to train since we share an affinity... but I don't know what to do with you two..." He said, placing his finger to his chin. Haku then raised her hand before speaking.

"I can handle my training for the most part, Kakashi-sensei. Though, I was wondering if you knew any wind users within the village." She said, earning a nod from the man before he spoke.

"Asuma is the only one I can think of... and he should be free since Shikamaru will likely train in family techniques." He said, making her smile slightly before doing a slight bow and using the **Shunshin** to leave.

"Now Naruto... I think I know someone who can train you." He said cryptically, making the blond cross his arms and raise an eyebrow to hurry him up. "Check the hot springs tomorrow." He said with a smile before taking himself and Sasuke away in his own **Shunshin**. Naruto scowled before walking off a few feet before face-palming and using his own **Shunshin** to leave; a small storm of crystal shards left in his wake.

He arrived at his home and unsealed his house key from a basic storage scroll he found amongst his mother's possessions; an example to use in his own sealing journey. He decided he'd use it until he actually started his Fūinjutsu training. He was surprised when he saw a note and a wrapped item on his table. _'Kakashi-sensei really needs to stop breaking in here.'_ He thought to himself with annoyance.

He walked over and read the note.

_Yo Naruto_, _Kakashi here_

_The Hokage came to see me earlier to give me this, he said it belonged to your mother and that he'd only just found it... something about it being stolen a while back. Anyway, here it is... if you need any help learning how to use it, you can ask me after the exams. Until then, good luck with your training._

_Ja ne!_

Naruto shook his head slightly as he crumpled up the note and threw it in the bin, while also looking over the wrapped item. _'I wonder what it is...'_ He thought as he picked it up and took the wrapping off it. His eyes instantly popped out of his head at what he saw. It was a standard length Chokutō with a black blade, red lines flowing along it almost as though they were strands of hair. The handle was an icy blue colour, with diagonal increments adding to the complexity of the blade with small red crystals embedded in three places on both sides. Then there was a slight tassel attached to the bottom of the handle, consisting of a green almost silk like material. Written in very small text on the side of the hilt was the word **Akashio (Red Tide)**.

(AN: If someone would like to draw/sketch what I just described without making it look disgusting like it probably does, that would be great :3)

Naruto touched the red crystals testing, before dropping his jaw when the crystals actually seemed to reach to his chakra. _'Are those... chakra amplifying crystals?! Is that even possible? I have so got to try making those.'_ He thought to himself, before he realized what he was holding. _'Maybe after I actually learn how to use the sword...'_ He thought to himself. He smiled as he placed the blade along with the rest of his mother's possessions. _'Add that to the list of things I need to learn eh Kaa-san?'_ He thought with a smile. It wasn't completely bitter nor was it completely happy... he couldn't place the feeling.

He sighed as he thought of the strange instruction Kakashi had given him. What would he find at a hot springs that would help him on his training? He thought about the water walking exercise, but he'd already learnt that... it didn't make sense to him, and that was a pretty difficult thing to achieve these days. _'Maybe I should just do some wind manipulation exercises with Haku-chan. I won't tell her how I feel until after the exams... it'll make them more complicated.'_ He thought to himself, before shaking his head. _'No, Kakashi-sensei obviously had a reason for giving me those instructions, I'll follow them... for now.'_ He thought as he laid back in his bed and fell asleep.

**-****End-**

**It was pretty obvious to the outcome, so I closed my poll and can safely say the first Naruto film will be in my story. That won't be until at least after the Tsunade retrieval arc, so don't expect it soon.**

**Review, Favourite, Follow etc. **

**LiamMorg. Out.**

**Ja Ne!**


	12. Preparation and Perverseness

**I don't own Naruto. He is a Genin of Konoha, not a slave. He is the last Uzumaki, not some random kid. He is a character, not an object. I don't own Naruto... and I never will.**

**This chapter will cover the training up until the finals. I may get it all done in this chapter, though I highly doubt it. The training could be over this chapter, or 1 or 2 more. **

**This chapter will also introduce one of my favourite characters in the entire show... I only hope I can portray his crazy levels of perverseness and spirited personality correctly.**

**Quote of the day/chapter: "To learn something may be enough for some, but to master it is the goal of those greater. Those who take that extra step will be the ones who are remembered." **

**Chapter 12: Preparation and Perverseness**

**-Last Chapter-**

_He sighed as he thought of the strange instruction Kakashi had given him. What would he find at a hot springs that would help him on his training? He thought about the water walking exercise, but he'd already learnt that... it didn't make sense to him, and that was a pretty difficult thing to achieve these days. 'Maybe I should just do some wind manipulation exercises with Haku-chan. I won't tell her how I feel until after the exams... it'll make them more complicated.' He thought to himself, before shaking his head. 'No, Kakashi-sensei obviously had a reason for giving me those instructions, I'll follow them... for now.' He thought as he laid back in his bed and fell asleep.  
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**-****Start-**

Naruto awoke in a cold sweat, having had the same nightmare as the previous day. He growled in frustration and annoyance as he heard his alarm clock go off. In his slightly tired and annoyed mindset he created a crystal needle on instinct and pierced the alarm clock, destroying it and silencing it for good.

The blond just let out a groan – that was a good alarm clock.

_'Well, I'll need to go shopping at some point... thank god Haku mentioned using the **Henge** to pretend I'm someone else.'_ He thought as he rose from his bed.

He got up and showered, then promptly had breakfast and got dressed. He looked at himself in a mirror, gave a little wink and placed his mask on. Then he channelled the smallest amount of his tenant's chakra to make his eyes turn red and his pupils to turn to slits. _'Oh yeah, this is an image.'_ He thought to himself as he frowned slightly.

"Something is missing..." He mused. He found something lacking in his attire, but shrugged and decided to leave it until later. Then he tapped the mirror as it collapsed into small green crystals, showing that the mirror was created by him. _'Thanks for the inspiration Haku-chan.'_ He thought with a smirk, not that anyone would see it.

He left his house and began to walk through the streets of Konoha, towards the hot springs. He pretended not to notice everyone staring at him like he was famous or part of some sort of major event. He smiled behind his mask, as while wearing it people didn't recognise him and would actually seem rather impressed with his appearance.

As he arrived at the hot springs he found his teacher along with Sasuke. He slightly raised an eyebrow – and once again the mask hid the action – as he approached the two. Sasuke smirked at the sight while Kakashi seemed confused, since Naruto and Sasuke had never shown their masks to the man. He narrowed his eyes as Naruto stopped in front of them.

"Naruto? That you?" Kakashi said, making Naruto take off the mask and smile at the man while pointing a finger at Sasuke, who had taken his own mask out of his pouch. Kakashi just raised an eyebrow before speaking.

"Is the mask really necessary?" He said, furrowing his brows slightly. Naruto just let out a small growl while scowling. Then he placed the mask back on before speaking.

"Don't you judge me, at least I take my mask off!" Naruto said, making the man face-fault a little. _'Damn blonds... too quick for their own good.'_ Kakashi thought to himself, referring to both his late sensei and student.

"Well, that's enough of that... I just came to check you actually showed up. See you at the finals, Ja ne!" Kakashi said, holding up his hand in a half-assed wave as he grabbed Sasuke and used the **Shunshin** to leave. Naruto just frowned before shrugging and beginning his walk into the hot springs.

As he reached the entrance he found himself on a small bridge with a few pools all around him. Surprisingly there were little to no people around at all, despite the obvious comfort that the pools would provide. The blond shrugged it off before jumping up onto the roof for the person he was looking for.

Then he felt a small disturbance on one of the small sections between two bridges. He slightly sighed as he noticed Ebisu was the one standing there. _'I know my victory was... underhanded... last time we met, but is this guy really any good? We'll see I guess...'_ Naruto thought to himself as he used his own **Shunshin **to get behind the man to test his reflexes.

To his surprise, the man almost immediately spun around and grabbed him by the head before raising an eyebrow at the person in front of him. The boy in his grasp was blond sure enough, but was taller, more muscular and wearing far more attractive clothing than the one he came here for. The blond in his grasp simply raised his hands in a placating gesture as Ebisu released him.

"Just testing you Ebisu-sensei." The blond spoke as he removed his mask to reveal the unmistakable whisker marks of one Naruto Uzumaki. Ebisu gawked at the transformation the previously mischievous and annoying blond had gone through. _'Works every time.'_ Naruto thought with a large smirk.

"N-Naruto-kun?" Ebisu said, earning a small diagonal incline of the blond's head – the smirk never leaving his face. He put the mask back on as he found it far more fun when people had to guess what he was thinking. Ebisu just readjusted his jaw and coughed into his hand as he pushed his glasses back.

"Anyway, I will be your trainer for the near future as instructed by Kakashi-san." He said professionally, making Naruto snort slightly. _'Geez, it's just the two of us... what's he trying to prove with the professionalism?' _The blond thought to himself before shifting his stance into that of a more battle ready individual.

"I assume Kakashi-sensei has informed you of my skill set." Naruto said rhetorically, but was surprised to see that Ebisu shook his head. Naruto at first groaned, but then a smirk graced his features as he realised he'd get to surprise yet another person with his unique **Kekkei Genkai**. It was so much fun that he unlocked it.

"No Naruto-kun, he did not. He told me and I quote _"It will be far more entertaining if he shows you."_. I'm not sure why he said it like that, but I didn't ask." Ebisu said as Naruto nodded professionally. He placed his arm over the railing and looked out towards the various hot pools and exhaled comfortably before raising his voice.

"So, would you like a run down of my abilities, or do you have my training planned out already?" Naruto asked, making the man take a thinking pose. He did have the training planned out, but with the physical changed Naruto had gone through it was entirely possible that he'd improved his chakra control as well.

"Well I _did_ have your training planned, but I am unsure how useful to you it will be. Tell me, how is your chakra control?" Ebisu asked, making Naruto spin on his foot to face the man. Ebisu raised an eyebrow at the unusual motion but decided to ignore it.

"My control is leagues better than it was in the past... actually, let me test something." Naruto said, making Ebisu nod before stepping back a few paces to give the blond room for whatever it was that he was doing.

"**Bunshin no Jutsu (Clone Technique)"** Naruto said casually. This caused a large poof of smoke to appear to his right, revealing a perfect clone. Naruto smiled and waved his hand through the clone before dispelling it. Ebisu raised an eyebrow at the action.

"What was the purpose of that?" The bandanna wearing Jōnin asked. Naruto just let out a 'hmph' before speaking.

"Kakashi-sensei really told you nothing huh?" He said, earning a small shake of the head from the man. Naruto ran a hand through his blond locks before continuing. "...alright, long story short my chakra reserves are massive. As both an Uzumaki and a you-know-what my reserves are higher than most Jōnin, maybe some Kage." He continued, referring to his Jinchūriki status discretely while pointing to the location of his seal. Ebisu widened his eyes at the statement, not imagining that level of chakra.

"I see, so your reserves were so large that you couldn't make a standard clone, hence the shadow clones..." He said, getting a nod from the blond as he held up his hand slightly to elaborate.

"Yes and no. I couldn't pass the academy due to the clone issue, but I wasn't given the **Kage Bushin no Jutsu** to circumvent it because the teachers wanted me to fail. I learned the technique when I stole the scroll of seals because of Mizuki... I assume you heard of that?" Naruto said, getting a slight nod from the man.

"Yes I have... now, back on topic... do you know the water walking exercise?" Ebisu asked, getting a nod from the blond. "...have you perfected it?" He said, making Naruto shrug. Ebisu just stood and waited for him to elaborate.

"Not completely... I can fight on the water but not forever. My control will likely never be perfect." Naruto said in a slightly subdued tone. The Uzumaki were great and ideal hosts for the Kyūbi, but the chakra issue was rather debilitating.

"Well, since the water here is obvious quite hot it will assist you with learning how to adjust to the varying conditions of water that you may need to walk across in future." Ebisu said confidently, though he was secretly just buying time to think of something to actually teach the blond.

"That makes sense." Naruto replied, his mask hiding his slightly unconvinced look. Unfortunately for Naruto his mask did reveal his eyes so Ebisu was able to catch his narrowed gaze. Ebisu decided to take note of the blond's quick assessment of his pseudo-lie. They then promptly walked to the entrance of one of the pools. Naruto took off the majority of his clothing and took a few steps onto the water. He rolled his eyes, feeling little difference to when he did the exercise on cool water.

Ebisu was surprised by how easily the blond was going about the exercise, at one point even showing off by doing it with one foot or even individual fingers. There were a few times he fell in but it was mostly due to him losing focus other than anything else. He thought back to their first meeting, and how he'd managed to influence Konohamaru to work hard... it was strange to see that blond boy being the same person in front of him.

Then he heard some perverse giggling and turned around to see a man with a large white mane leaning against the wall of the female baths. Ebisu pushed his glasses up his nose and gave the man a glance from the side while giving a small yet dark chuckle.

"I do not know who you are..." He said, though not loud enough for the man to hear him. "...but I will not allow any shameless acts in my presence!" He continued, this time much louder while running at the man. The man then turned to face him.

"Ah Geez..." He said, creating a hand sign that resulted in a poof of smoke appearing around him which dissipated to reveal the man sat atop a large toad. The toad then used its tongue to grab Ebisu and fling him against the ground.

"Don't make a ruckus. Geez what's going to happen if I get caught?" The man said with as though peeping was common practice. Naruto dropped his jaw that Ebisu was so easily beaten. _'He summoned a toad... why does that sound so familiar? Eh, this hot air is messing with my head...'_ Naruto thought to himself as he walked off the water, grabbed his clothes and strolled over to Ebisu – giving him an experimental kick to see if he was still conscious.

Naruto sighed as he looked over to the man riding the toad. "Did you have to knock him out? Couldn't you have just told him to shut up or something?" Naruto said with clear irritation. The man atop the toad just let out a snort and crossed his arms, not really caring for the plight of the young ninja – at least that's what it seemed like. _'So this is Minato's kid eh? He seems strong, let's play dumb for a while to see what he does...'_ He thought, letting an almost invisible smile appear on his face.

"He shouldn't have interrupted my research. An author can't have things getting in his way." He said, making Naruto face-fault a little _'A ninja... who summons toads, writes books and has a horned head protector that reads 'oil'... what a weird guy.'_ Naruto thought to himself with a small smirk.

"Whatever, I guess I can wait for him to wake up... in any case, who might you be mister? You're obviously a ninja, but that head protector isn't exactly standard issue is it? Oh, and I'm Naruto Uzumaki, in case you care." Naruto said happily, not wanting to make a bad impression on the man.

The man smiled and started to get into strange poses while whipping his hair around. "I'm glad you asked..." He said, continuing to pose. "...I am the Gama Sennin (Toad Sage) of Mount Myōboku!" He said dramatically, finishing his small pose. Naruto tried to force himself to stay composed, but he broke out laughing at the ridiculous posing the man was doing.

"I...I'm sor... sorry... that was... too funny." He said between bouts of laughter. The self proclaimed toad sage just frowned somewhat childishly and let out a 'hmph'. He then dispelled his toad and jumped to the end of the bridge. Naruto finally controlled his laughter and just stood with an even gaze before slightly widening his eyes. _'Toad summoning... toad sage... this must be Jiraiya of the Sannin! Hmm... let's pretend I don't know for now..." _Naruto thought to himself as he walked forward a little.

"So... Mr. Toad Sage, I don't suppose you happen to be able to train me considering you uh..." He said, pointing at Ebisu's unconscious form. Jiraiya just let out a forced mocking laugh. Naruto's eyebrow twitched slightly as he did so.

"I don't care about your training." He said as he began to walk past Naruto. Said blond quickly put his clothes on and picked up Ebisu, laying him against a nearby wall before catching up to the toad sage.

"Come on, what else have you got to do? I'm sure it'll be fun." Naruto said cheerfully, making Jiraiya snort before answering.

"Shut up!" He shouted, making Naruto stop for a second. "I don't like people who don't know the proper way to ask for favours!" He continued. Naruto just rolled his eyes at this.

"What was wrong with the way I asked you the first time?" Naruto said, making Jiraiya open his mouth to speak but promptly close it when he couldn't think of a reason. _'Damn blonds... too smart for their own good.'_ He thought as Naruto gained a victorious smirk.

"A-and... I don't like men." Jiraiya said, making Naruto face fault. _'He must've had big issues training the Yondaime then... damn liar.'_ Naruto thought to himself with a disbelieving stare.

"...Is that the best you can do?" Naruto said, making Jiraiya let out a snort before he jumped onto a nearby railing and disappeared in a rather over-the-top fashion that involved wind and jumping across rooftops.

"...Damn." Naruto said aloud before looking over at Ebisu and thinking about his options. "Eh, he'll be fine." He said, before following after the toad sage. He eventually arrived on a street and began to look around. _'Let's try sensing...'_ Naruto said, as he focused on nearby chakra signatures. He then heard a small growl from inside his mind. _"What's up Kurama?" _He asked mentally.

"_**I think I may have been wrong about your sensory ability."** _The fox said slowly, trying to stretch it out to avoid being embarrassed for as long as possible. Naruto just blinked repeatedly before furrowing his brows in confusion.

"_Whaddya mean?" _Naruto questioned the fox.

"_**While the 'Negative Emotions Sensing' is a real thing that you posses, I believe you are also a natural but untrained sensor." **_The fox said, making Naruto gape slightly. That would explain how he could sense other things when he tried too.

"_Huh."_ Was all Naruto had to say to the fox, which was inwardly jumping for joy he would not have to put up with the boy mocking him about being wrong. If there was anything the fox wouldn't stand for it was mocking, and it wasn't like he could leave since he was sealed in the brat.

(AN: I did this because I learned Minato was a powerful sensor after researching some things.)

"_**If I remember correctly, some sensors have different focuses. Some use hand signs... usually the Ram seal while other sensors place a finger on the ground." **_Kurama said, making Naruto nod and crouch down, placing his finger on the ground. He immediately found Jiraiya as there was no doubt who the massive chakra signature belonged to. _'He has loads of chakra, comparable to me.'_ Naruto thought with a little awe. If a random person could have as much chakra as an Uzumaki Jinchūriki then they deserved praise.

He walked towards the location of the chakra source and found a small bar of some sort. He walked in to see the man he was looking for along with two women. He smirked deviously as he discretely went through hand signs. As he finished, Jiraiya's eyes widened as he jumped up off his seat and held his behind. If he'd looked back, he would've noticed a very small spike of rock.

Naruto whistled slightly and walked in, trying to pretend he hadn't already been there. The two women had left when Jiraiya seemingly went insane so Naruto didn't have to do anything in that regard. As Jiraiya saw him he furrowed his brows a little, to which Naruto just stood there without changing expressions at all.

"So, I found you." Naruto said with a smile. Jiraiya just sighed and nodded. _'Was he responsible for... whatever that was? I didn't notice a chakra spike, and Jinchūriki always have trouble with chakra control... he seems worth training that's for sure, though I would've anyway.'_ Jiraiya thought to himself, having difficulty maintaining his frown.

"I guess so... but this doesn't mean I'll train you..." Jiraiya said, before a light bulb turned on in his head. "...how'd you find me anyway?" He continued with an inquisitive stare to which Naruto sighed slightly. _'Should I tell him? Fine...'_ Naruto thought with a slightly fake frown.

"I'm a sensor type." Naruto said, making Jiraiya widen his eyes in a mixture of true surprise and fake surprise. _'Well, Minato was a powerful sensor so it does make sense... and my reserves are very large.'_ He thought to himself. The more he heard about Naruto the more proud he was. What's next, a **Kekkei Genkai**?

"Really? That's interesting. Alright Gaki I'll agree to teach you..." He said, making Naruto grin widely. "...if you can find me a hot babe!" He continued, making Naruto fall over comically before getting up with a large tick mark. _'Unbelievable... I can't believe I actually have to use this again.'_ Naruto thought to himself as he placed his hand in the ram seal.

"**Oiroke no Jutsu (Sexy Jutsu)"** Naruto said in exasperation. He was then overcome by an explosion of white smoke which cleared to reveal an attractive blond girl with 2 ponytails and absolutely no body coverage other than very conveniently placed smoke. Jiraiya's eyes turned into large white orbs to almost comical proportions as he looked over Naruto's transformed self.

_'This is so belittling... I swear if I don't get any useful skills out of this training I'll turn his member into a real rock.'_ Naruto thought to himself as a small smile graced his face, that would be something to see.

"Oh~ would you mind helping me with my training?" Naruto cooed out, almost wanting to kill himself right then and there. Jiraiya just nodded fervently as Naruto rolled his eyes and reversed the transformation. "Alright, that's enough of that." Naruto said, making Jiraiya whine slightly before sighing.

"Fine let's get to it." He said as he began to lead the blond to a more appropriate location.

**-Somewhere... else-**

The two eventually arrived at a small river, flanked by large gatherings of trees on both sides, a large cliff face in one direction and mostly flat land in the other. The two sat down at the side of the river and just allowed themselves to take in the surroundings. Jiraiya was surprised to see that Naruto was not rushing him, and actually enjoying nature.

"You... aren't a normal kid I'll give you that." Jiraiya said, making Naruto open the eye on the same side as the toad sage. He gave an inquisitive look towards the man who shrugged at it. "...it's just unusual for someone your age to be so mature. I thought you'd be screaming at me for peeping or knocking out your teacher or something..." He mused, making Naruto chuckle somewhat bitterly.

"I haven't had the luxury of a normal upbringing Jiraiya-sensei." He said, making Jiraiya suddenly start spluttering in surprise. Naruto laughed at the man's surprise, since it was obvious to the reason.

"How do you know who I am Gaki?" The man replied, making Naruto shrug his shoulders as he closed his eye again.

"It wasn't hard to figure out. You are about 50 years old, you summon toads and you call yourself the Gama Sennin. If I didn't know who you are there would be a problem. It's not every week you meet two members of the Densetsu no Sannin (Three Legendary Ninja)." Naruto said with a smirk, making Jiraiya furrow his brows.

"Orochimaru?" Jiraiya said, making Naruto nod slightly. "I see... you're lucky to be alive kid." He continued, to which Naruto let out a snort of laughter before nodding in agreement.

"That I am. So, shall we begin?" Naruto said, making the man nod before he went through hand signs and placed his hand on the ground. Out of the smoke that followed arrived the same toad as earlier, which laid out a small scroll in front of the blond. Naruto raised an eyebrow and opened it, before widening his eyes and looking at Jiraiya with shock. The man just laughed and de-summoned the toad.

"You... want me to be the next toad summoner?!" Naruto asked/shouted at the man, who just nodded at him. "...but why? We just met, at least the Yondaime was your student!" He said, making Jiraiya walk over to him and place a hand on his back.

"That may be, but I think it's time I took another student..." He said. Naruto just nodded somewhat dumbly at the man as he prepared to continue. "...besides, you have everything a summoner requires... large chakra reserves, potential and an adequate level of skill." He continued, making Naruto smile up at him.

"Now then, just sign your name in blood and hand print it." He said. Naruto nodded and took the Kunai attached to the mechanism in his sleeve out before slicing his finger (come on, this must be way less painful than literally biting your finger open.) and writing out his name, finishing with a hand print. Jiraiya then re-summoned the toad and gave it the scroll before it went back to the summoning realm.

"Good, now moving on... what do you know about the different types of chakra?" Jiraiya said, making Naruto raise an eyebrow before moving his hand to cup his chin and moving his eyes upwards in a thinking pose.

"Well let's see... there is normal chakra, nature energy or Senjutsu chakra... and Bijuu chakra. Those are the ones I know of, anyway." Naruto said, earning a nod from the man who walked over to him before placing a hand on his shoulder.

"I assume you are aware of your burden." He said almost rhetorically, getting a nod of affirmation from Naruto before continuing. "...for you to summon the strongest of toads you will need to be able to draw out it's chakra." Jiraiya said. He was confused when a small smirk graced Naruto's features.

"Oh really? Well, can I try to summon something to get a grasp of it first?" He said, making the man shrug.

"I guess... first you must draw some blood on the hand you used to sign the contract and use the seal Boar, dog, bird, monkey and ram before placing your hand on the ground." The white haired man stated. Naruto nodded before going through the motions described. _'Let's start small...'_ He thought to himself.

"**Kuchiyose no Jutsu! (Summoning Technique!)"** He called out, resulting in a small poof of smoke that cleared to reveal a small orange toad wearing a small coat. Naruto resisted the urge to 'aww' at it. Jiraiya was surprised Naruto managed to summon a noteworthy toad on his first try... rather than a tadpole or something.

"Yo... whaddya summon me for you old pervert?" The toad asked, making Naruto laugh at Jiraiya's expense while said man just face-faulted. The toad noticed Naruto and jumped up onto his head. Naruto stopped laughing and looked up at the toad with amusement. He was surprisingly unfazed the toad could speak.

"Hey there, sorry if we interrupted something. I was the one who summoned you... I'm Naruto Uzumaki, nice to meet you." Naruto said with an inviting smile. The toad just looked him over with an inquisitive gaze to which Naruto didn't react to in the slightest.

"You summoned me?" He said, getting a slight nod from the blond since if he gave a full nod the toad would fall off. "...then I guess you're the new summoner, I'm Gamakichi... nice to meet a summoner with manners." He continued, making Naruto close his eyes and smile at the toad while Jiraiya muttered something about no respect.

"Well... I don't really have any reason to keep you here since I was just testing the summoning technique, so you may return back to... wherever you were if you like." He said, but was surprised when the toad just shook his head, which was a weird sight.

"Nah, I never get to leave Mount Myōboku... it'll be nice just hanging out here for a while." He said, to which Naruto's smile returned. Jiraiya was smiling also at the friendly atmosphere between the two. He wouldn't be surprised if Gamakichi became Naruto's personal summon.

"So, what now Jiraiya-sensei?" Naruto said, breaking the man out of his thoughts as he walked over before speaking.

"You'll need to try and use the beasts chakra to summon some bigger toads, though I'm not sure how to go about this." He said, making Naruto smirk once more.

"_Say Kurama, should we scare him with the initial transformation?" _Naruto mentally asked the fox, who snorted in what sounded like amusement.

"_**Sounds like a good idea, I can't wait to see his reaction!"**_ The fox said, making Naruto roll his eyes playfully as Jiraiya watched him with a very confused expression. Naruto placed his hands in the 'clap hands' seal as he channelled the initial Jinchūriki transformation. As if on cue, the red chakra basically exploded from Naruto, knocking Jiraiya back while Gamakichi was surprisingly unfazed. Naruto's features became more feral; red slitted eyes, thicker and more defined whisker marks, extended nails and even spikier hair that seemed to almost resemble fur.

Jiraiya almost immediately gulped in fear as he saw the blond smiling at him, almost as though he wanted his blood. After a few moments Naruto broke out laughing at Jiraiya's expense, confusing the man further.

"Man, you should've seen the look on your face!" Naruto exclaimed, his features unchanging from their feral look. Jiraiya tentatively walked towards the boy as he was uncertain whether he was in control or not.

"You... can control its chakra?" Jiraiya asked, getting a small shake of the head from Naruto. He shot him a look that asked him to elaborate as to what he meant.

"We have... an agreement." Naruto said carefully, not wishing to see what the man would do if he feared the Kyūbi was influencing him in some way. Jiraiya adopted a very serious look and stared at Naruto, whose reaction was to stay as unflinching as possible.

"What kind of agreement?" He said with a serious tone that Naruto was not expecting from the otherwise goofy toad sage.

"I give him access to my senses so he can see what goes on in the world, and in return he gives me access to a bit of his chakra." Naruto replied, making the toad sage harden his gaze. He didn't and wouldn't believe the creature that killed his prized student would do something so inane and harmless.

"How can you trust the beast that ravaged our village?" Jiraiya asked quietly, but showing almost fearsome anger. Naruto just gulped and replied.

"The same way I trust the people who have scorned and hated me my entire life... everyone deserves a chance, even ageless chakra constructs." Naruto said, making Jiraiya drop his jaw. If he'd been in his mindscape, he'd have seen a similar reaction from Kurama.

"Has it done anything to earn your trust?" Jiraiya questioned, making Naruto nod.

"Two things actually. He told me his name and helped me with a certain seal." He replied, making the toad sage take a confused expression.

"Name? 'He'? Seal?" Jiraiya shot out, making Naruto groan in irritation.

"Yes, he has a name. No, I'm not sure if he is a 'he' but it seems appropriate given the loud booming voice and by seal..." He said, unzipping his jacket and taking off a small bandage over his cursed seal. "...I mean this." He finished, making Jiraiya gasp at the cursed seal.

"Why hasn't that been contained?" He asked quickly, to which Naruto rolled his eyes.

"Are you even listening? I just said the Kyūbi helped me with the seal. Orochimaru's soul portion is gone from the seal, so it's harmless unless I say so." Naruto said in annoyance, making Jiraiya widen his eyes at the opportunity presented to him. _'If I can compare this seal to an unaltered seal I could decipher how to remove the soul portion from all of them! Maybe even remove them completely!'_ He thought to himself with barely hidden excitement.

"Whatever... let's just continue with summoning." Jiraiya said, obviously losing this argument. Naruto was the beast's host at the end of the day, nobody but another Jinchūriki had any right to question how his relationship with the fox went.

"Sure thing." Naruto said as he channelled the chakra used to achieve the initial Jinchūriki transformation to fuel the technique. He went through the seals once more before calling out **"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" **which resulted in a much larger poof of smoke, that cleared to reveal a medium sized magenta coloured toad with black markings over his body.

(AN: This is Gamaken from Shippuden, my logic is that he'd be smaller in Part 1... around half the size of Gamabunta.)

"Oh, hey Ken." Gamakichi spoke up from atop Naruto's' head. Jiraiya was surprised that Naruto was doing so well, but decided to stay quiet. _'At this rate I'll have nothing left to teach him by the end of the week... unless I teach him that...'_ The toad sage thought to himself.

The large toad looked down at Naruto who smiled and gave him a small wave. He returned the gesture with a clumsy wave of his own.

"So, you are the new summoner then?" The large toad asked, to which Naruto nodded. "...I see. You may call me Gamaken, though I warn you, I am ungraceful." He continued, to which Naruto raised an eyebrow and looked up at Gamakichi – who hadn't left his head – and just got a look to say 'don't question it'.

"Nice to meet you Gamaken... I'll take a note of... that." Naruto replied, still unsure what he meant by ungraceful. The toad then nodded and stood somewhat awkwardly, as though unsure of what to do. "...oh, you can leave if you want." Naruto added. As if on cue, the toad instantly disappeared, leaving a sweat-dropping Naruto and a sighing Jiraiya.

"Weird toad that one..." Jiraiya said, to which Naruto nodded. "...anyway, that's enough for today. For the time being we'll continue to work on summoning. If you can summon Gamabunta by the finals, then that'll be great." He said as he turned around and walked towards some bushes before crouching down. Naruto walked after him to see that there were some girls in bikini's playing under a waterfall. He sighed and just bopped Jiraiya over the head before walking away muttering 'Ero-Sennin (Pervy Sage). Jiraiya instantly paled. _'Oh I hope that doesn't stick...'_

**-Two Week Later-**

Naruto's training with Jiraiya had been going well if you looked at it from one angle, he was able to summon most toads at will with Kurama's chakra. On the flip-side however, he could not summon Gamabunta no matter how hard he tried. Quite frankly, the blond was getting rather infuriated with the issue. To anyone else the progress would've been staggering, but Naruto wasn't one to follow others.

He had conversed with his Bijū companion about the level of chakra he could borrow. The fox – being its prideful and irritating self – would not give up more chakra easily, but over the week the rock-hard mental barrier it had erected had crumbled and the fox finally gave in to the blond's nagging.

Things elsewhere in Konoha were going a lot worse. The proctor from the second exam had been found dead and cut apart, with nobody being aware of what happened to him. Dosu – the opponent of Haku in the finals – had been killed by Gaara due to the influence of the Ichibi and the Jōnin along with the Sandaime were discussing the issue of Orochimaru.

Sasuke had been training on a large cliff outside Konoha with Kakashi. He had been learning general skills and most notably, the **Chidori (One Thousand Birds)**. This jutsu was created by Kakashi himself and considering the strength of Gaara's sand shield Kakashi saw little choices of what to teach the boy.

Haku for the meantime had been training both her **Kekkei Genkai** and **Suiton** abilities as she was unable to find Asuma. Apparently the man would be busy for a little while, so she decided to get something productive done in the meantime. She was feeling rather lonely without a certain blond and he himself would be lying if he said he wasn't missing her too.

Naruto had also found the 'hole' in his outfit and had placed a very personalised order in a clothing store that would be ready just before the exams begun. He smiled when he thought of it, wondering how people would react to its pure awesomeness. He wasn't stupid though, he'd written down all the details he'd given to ensure he could replace it if he outgrew it or damaged it. When added to his current attire with the mask, he'd look like a badass.

Jiraiya had been showing just how unfocused and perverted he could be during the week, constantly ignoring Naruto to check out girls. Naruto's reaction had either been to reveal Jiraiya and get him a beating or to use the **Oiroke no Jutsu** to steal his attention back. He shivered at what would happen if Haku caught him using it, he'd be spikier than a porcupine.

A lot of the Rookies were surprisingly using their time productively. Shikamaru – for example – was spending his days training with Chōji and Asuma. Those that lost during the second test were training hard despite the fact that they were not going to be participating in the finals. Neji was with Tenten working on a certain Gentle fist technique and the Sand siblings were up to their own business.

Naruto had also been given the run-down of what the toads could be used for and quite frankly the blond had never been so happy to have received something. The toads were like the ultimate summons. They could use jutsu that could be used in collaboration with the summoner, they could use Genjutsu and they could even use weapons and their own tongues! Senjutsu obviously piqued Naruto's interest, but Jiraiya strongly stated that he couldn't do it for now. Naruto had also managed to get the **Katon: Endan (Fire Release: Flame Bullet)** out of Jiraiya for combination techniques with the toads. He rushed the training time using clones – something Jiraiya thought was brilliant.

Now, Naruto was ready to try once more to summon the ever-elusive toad boss – Gamabunta.

"Alright Gaki, give it a go." Jiraiya said, giving Naruto his complete attention for once now that Naruto was sure he'd be able to do it. Naruto quickly went through hand signs after biting his thumb – something he still thought was painful as hell – and called out.

"**Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"** He shouted, channelling as much of Kurama's chakra that he could. He then found himself enveloped in a massive towering mass of smoke. Naruto coughed and covered his mouth as he looked around to the smoke clearing. He noticed he was stood atop a gargantuan mass of dusty red skin. He smiled at the implication before the toad began to look around as though expecting to find someone. _'Doesn't he realise that I'd be on his head after summoning him? Wait, where'd Jiraiya-sensei go?'_ Naruto thought to himself.

"Eh, excuse me... would you happen to be Gamabunta?" Naruto said loudly so the huge toad would hear him, to which the toad raised his head a little.

"**I am... now, who's up there, and where is that old pervert? Why'd he summon me here?" **The toad asked, to which Naruto inwardly jumped for joy before jumping down into the toads nose so he could see him.

"I'm Naruto Uzumaki, the new summoner for the toads... pleasure to meet you!" He said with another inviting smile. Unlike the rest of the toads – however – Gamabunta did not seem so accepting and let out a small 'hmph' of disbelief.

"Yeah right... as if a squirt like you could summon me. Now, where's the old pervert?" He said, making Naruto roll his eyes as he went through some hand signs before biting his hand and thrusting it down on Gamabunta's nose

"**Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"** He called out, making smoke appear as Gamakichi appeared. The toad boss gawked slightly at the summoning of his son. _'Ah, I see... this is Minato's boy eh? Jiraiya always said he'd get him to sign the contract one day.'_ Gamabunta thought to himself.

"Satisfied?" Naruto said cheerily, not wanting to piss of a toad the size of Kurama. The toad narrowed his gaze on the boy and saw that he seemed like someone who stood with a level of skill and self confidence in his ability.

"**Alright, I'll accept you summoned me... but I will not acknowledge you as my summoner..."** The toad said, making Naruto drop his jaw before continuing. **"...unless you have a drink with me."** He finished, making Naruto face-fault.

"What?! A drink?" Naruto shouted, making the toad nod. "...Ooook." Naruto said in confusion. Gamabunta inwardly smirked while Jiraiya – who was watching from a safe distance – just sighed at the toad's antics.

"**Summon me back in a few minutes." **The toad said before disappearing, leaving Naruto to fall all the way back to the earth. Luckily, his training with earth manipulation allowed him to soften the ground beneath him before he landed. _'That still hurt... crazy toad.'_ Naruto thought as he looked for Jiraiya for a few minutes. _'I give up... that old pervert had disappeared... oh wait.'_ Naruto thought as he mentally face-palmed before placing a finger on the ground to find Jiraiya's chakra signature a long distance away. _'He is so weird' _Naruto thought as he re-summoned Bunta.

Gamabunta arrived back with a large glass – big enough for himself – along with a very small glass that Naruto couldn't believe he could fit in his hand. He shrugged it off and walked over to the glass and picked it up. He gave a sniff and blanched slightly. _'Alcohol... great...'_ Naruto thought.

"**To a long lived contract!" **The toad said, making Naruto smile at the toad as they both raised their glasses. Naruto drunk the beverage, despite the reflex to spit it out and Bunta just downed his. Naruto then jumped back up to the toad's nose.

"So, tell me... what can you do? Combat-wise?" Naruto asked the mighty toad who just smirked at the chance to boast. Naruto could already tell this would be overly stated. "...honestly." He added, to which the toad seemed to pout.

"**Whatever you say squirt."** He said, making Naruto sigh at the nickname. **"...I am a water using toad, so combination techniques with Wind, Lightning and Earth work well. I can also use oil which works well with most elements... Water will increase the speed of the oil, Wind will increase the pressure, Fire will set it ablaze, Earth will increase the stickiness and Lightning won't do much at all."** He said, making Naruto nod with a smile before adding. **"...I also have this sword."** He said, pointing at a Tantō bigger than Naruto's house.

"Interesting... I look forward to working with you in the future." Naruto said, making the toad nod before taking his leave. Naruto was rather happy the toad was so simple to win over, though summoning his son may have made it easier. He then jumped off the toad and gave a small wave as the toad reverse summoned himself back to the summoning realm. Naruto let out a content sigh.

"This has been a very rewarding two weeks... maybe I should start training something else now." Naruto mused as Jiraiya walked over. He gave the man a small glare to which he just chuckled while rustling his white mane.

"So, what are you planning on doing now Gaki?" Jiraiya said, as Naruto smirked slightly and closed his eyes – his head raised and a smile plastered across his visage.

"Who knows? Maybe train my wind affinity, Taijutsu, get started on Kenjutsu, work on my **Kekkei Genkai** or ge..." He said as the man grabbed him by the shoulders to stop him from speaking. The man gave him a very attentive look before speaking.

"You have a bloodline?!" The man said, making Naruto nod casually. "Why didn't you tell me this?! As your teacher I need to know things like this!" He bellowed, making Naruto chuckle somewhat, due to the embarrassment of not realising that.

"Uh... I didn't think of that?" He said. Jiraiya just looked at him with a twitching eye as Naruto walked over to the river and placed his hand atop it, focusing his **Shōton **chakra into it. To Jiraiya's amazement, the water began to crystallize outwards from the spot that Naruto's hand rested, making the blond grin victoriously. "I knew that would work!" He exclaimed.

"Well that's new..." Jiraiya all but whispered, but Naruto caught onto and gave him a small stare that made the man sweat slightly.

"What do you mean that's new?" Naruto said, making Jiraiya gulp. In truth, the Sandaime had been feeding him information about Naruto which is why he was able to identify him so easily, but he hadn't learned about his **Kekkei Genkai **yet.

"Oh, I just meant I haven't seen that before. I'm basically a veteran Gaki, so I've seen a lot!" He lied convincingly. Naruto just shot him a quick stare to check for deception but decided to stay quiet. He pulled his mask out of his pouch, placed it on his face and began to walk away before calling out to the man.

"You coming or what?" He said as he walked away. Jiraiya just smiled before walking after him.

The two walked over to Ichiraku Ramen – a spot Naruto hadn't had the luxury of going for a little while now – in order to get some lunch. Naruto stayed mostly quiet on the way over while Jiraiya kept glancing around at various pretty girls to which Naruto's irritation continued to grow. Secretly, Jiraiya was almost mourning Naruto's youth.

_'I guess I should've been around more for you kid, god knows Minato would've wanted me to... now look at you, a serious Shinobi more mature than some people twice your age. I can't tell whether to be proud or saddened.' _The man thought to himself. Naruto obviously still had his humorous side and his somewhat naïve view on the world, but he was still too mature for Jiraiya's liking.

They eventually arrived at the ramen shop. Naruto sat down and took off his mask which resulting in his immediately being whacked over the head with a ladle. He groaned and looked up to see Ayame giving him an annoyed look.

"Where've you been Naruto, we haven't seen you in forever!" She shouted at him. Naruto gave her an apologetic smile but was inwardly laughing at the actions of the person he considered a surrogate sister. He was always touched that the Ichiraku's cared for him so much, despite him being... what he was.

"Sorry Ayame, I've been busy." He said, causing her to calm down and drink in his features for a moment before very lightly blushing at the improved looks he was spouting. _'I wonder if he wears that mask to keep the girls off him!'_ She thought almost deviously, before shaking her head to rid it of such thoughts.

"I can see that... who's your... old friend?" She said a little concernedly. It wasn't exactly normal for a 13 year old to make friends with someone who looked around 40-50 years old. His eyebrow twitched at the subtle jab but he ignored.

"This is Jiraiya of the Densetsu no Sannin." Naruto said as thought it was the most obvious thing in the world. Luckily there were no other shinobi around or Jiraiya's 'laying low' strategy would've been for naught.

"I... see..." She said, having absolutely no idea who that was. She assumed he was a ninja and therefore was teaching her little brother figure, so that cleared up her worries. She took their orders before running off to deal with them, leaving the two alone in the stand.

"So Gaki, got any girls you're interested in?" Jiraiya said with a slightly perverted smile. Naruto blushed a little and looked at his mask fondly. Jiraiya caught the actions and his smile deepened. _'Ohohoho! Looks like I'll have more research material in the future.'_ He thought deviously.

"Y-you could say that." He stuttered out. Jiraiya's expression turned a little serious at that moment, since it was clear the blond had legitimate feelings, not a mere crush. There was a big difference between the two of course.

"So, I assume you haven't told her anything yet?" He said, getting a shake of the head from the blond. "Why not?" He asked curiously, not sure why he'd neglect telling whoever it was.

"Well... I've only figured out my feelings recently and with the finals coming up I didn't want to complicate things..." He said honestly, making Jiraiya smile a little at the thoughtfulness of the blond boy.

"That makes sense I guess, but won't it already be complicated?" He said, making the blond take a look of confusion. "...well, I mean you already know you like the girl so it's already going to affect the way you think and if she likes you too then it won't change much will it?" He said almost as though he'd been in the situation before. Naruto placed his head atop his fist in a thinking pose before sighing.

"I guess you're right... but I think I need time to ready myself." Naruto said, making Jiraiya shrug. It wasn't his business when the kid asked a girl out, so he wouldn't poke his nose where it didn't belong... for once.

Ayame came back with the food they ordered before giving Naruto a look that was almost too sweet to be real. "You'll have to introduce me to this mystery girl sometime OK Naruto-kun?" She said, making Naruto almost shiver from the super-sweet tone. Jiraiya just shook his head at the blond, he was so screwed. After she went off to do other things Naruto turned back to Jiraiya.

"She wants to judge her, doesn't she?" He said, making Jiraiya nod slowly. "Dammit..." He muttered out, making the toad sage laugh lightly at his students expense. This was why he taught, the amusement value! They ate their food in silence, and when they were finished Jiraiya decided to start the conversation.

"So, this mystery girl have a name?" Jiraiya said sarcastically, making Naruto snort.

"No actually she doesn't... no name at all." Naruto replied with just as much sarcasm, making Jiraiya face-fault. _'Beaten at my own game...'_ He thought with a mixture of sadness and amusement. "Her name is Haku Yuki." Naruto said with a deep smile, while Jiraiya widened his eyes.

"As in the Yuki clan of **Mizu no Kuni (Land of Water)**?" He said, getting Naruto's attention back.

"The very same." He same casually.

"How'd that happen?" The white-haired Sannin replied which made Naruto sigh in exasperation as he ran a hand through his hair, leaned on the table and closed his eyes.

"Now that... is a long story." Naruto said, as Jiraiya leaned forward as though waiting for something. Naruto just sighed once more, knowing he'd actually need to tell the man.

"Right... we were given a mission to protect a bridge builder called Tazuna and escort him to the **Nami no Kuni (Land of Waves)**..." Naruto began, getting a nod from Jiraiya. "...it was a C-rank escort mission so we weren't expecting much until we were jumped by the Demon Brothers on the way there..." He continued, as one of Jiraiya's eyebrows raised slightly.

"The two Missing-nin from Kiri?" He said, getting a nod from Naruto who continued the tale.

"After that, Kakashi-sensei made Tazuna spill the real details of the mission. Turns out Gatō the shipping magnate had completely taken over the island..." Naruto said, making Jiraiya roll his eyes at the idea of someone like Gatō being such an asshole. "...we decided to continue the mission despite that. As we arrived on the island, we were attacked by Zabuza Momochi..." He said, as Jiraiya remained mostly impassive.

"So it was your team that did him in?" He asked as Naruto nodded. "...nice work kid." He said proudly, to which Naruto half smiled.

"Well Kakashi-sensei did most of the work... anyway, he fought Kakashi-sensei and trapped him in a water prison... we managed to free him and Kakashi had him beat and was preparing to finish him when a few Senbon pierced his neck..." Naruto continued as Jiraiya narrowed his eyes. "...a Kiri Hunter-nin arrived to take him away... but left WITH the body." He continued, which Jiraiya instantly recognised the significance of.

"So the Hunter-nin was working with Zabuza I take it?" Jiraiya responded as Naruto just nodded rhetorically, since Jiraiya clearly had it pegged.

"We worked out that Zabuza was still alive and we had about a week before he attacked again... near the end of the week I met a girl in the forest..." Naruto said before he was interrupted by Jiraiya.

"Haku?" He said, making Naruto glare at him.

"Yes, now stop interrupting!" He growled out, making the man hold up his hands in defeat. Naruto just sighed for the umpteenth time and continued. "We talked for a while about what drove us before she eventually left... claiming she was a boy... as if, she's far too pretty." Naruto said, as Jiraiya smiled knowingly at him making Naruto blush and turn away.

"When Zabuza attacked with the Hunter-nin me and Sasuke got stuck by ice mirrors created by the Hunter-nin while Kakashi-sensei fought Zabuza..." Naruto said, earning a slight gasp from Jiraiya.

"So, she was working for him then?" He stated, to which Naruto nodded a little sadly.

"Yes. After Sasuke went down saving my ass, I channelled _that_ chakra and beat her out of the mirrors. I knocked her unconscious and Kakashi-sensei defeated Zabuza. After a little talking and heart-to-heart I managed to convince her to stop living as a tool and to come here with us..." Naruto finished with a sharp intake of breath, that was a long story.

"Well I can't say I've ever been lucky enough to meet a hot girl..." He said, immediately earning a slight glare from Naruto. "...on a mission before that I actually got to stay with." He concluded, making Naruto's expression become slightly saddened.

"You've never had that type of relationship have you?" He said in a soft tone, which Jiraiya secretly greatly appreciated. He just let out a faux snort of laughter before continuing.

"Nah, the only woman I ever loved never wanted me. I still hope I'll get her one day..." He said almost absently. Naruto just smiled slightly at the words of his newest teacher, but knew it was likely wishful thinking.

"Who is she?" Naruto said, making Jiraiya smile.

"Tsunade Senju." He said, making Naruto raise an eyebrow.

"Your teammate? The best Kunoichi alive, the one who basically revolutionised medical Ninjutsu... that Tsunade Senju?" He asked, making Jiraiya nod.

"Huh..." Naruto said. He'd never known this little detail of the Sannin. It seemed they all had their unusual quirks. Then he remembered something and took a slightly accusing look to the man. "Maybe your unflinching perverseness drove her off." Naruto accused, making the man laugh deeply.

"Maybe, but that didn't start until at least after the 50th rejection!" He said in bouts of laughter to which Naruto couldn't help but join into. He sighed a little, glad he'd met this crazy and yet legendary figure. He sure was getting lucky recently...

Little did he know there was a masked individual watching him from a distance.

**-With Haku-**

The last Yuki was sitting on a tree out in the forests surrounding Konoha with a neutral expression. Over the past two weeks she had realised just how attached to Naruto she was, since she couldn't stop missing him. She wanted nothing more than to just track him down and tackle him into a passionate kiss. That would be odd, obviously, since they weren't dating but that's what her heart was demanding.

She fiddled absently with a small pink crystal that she'd kept after Naruto had forgotten to de-construct it. It was like a small anchor of sorts to the girl, since she could tell that his chakra was contained within it and that it would crumble away should anything happen to the blond. She smiled as she held it close to her. She wanted the finals to come and go so she could finally confront the whiskered blond about her feelings.

She was almost completely unrecognisable from the young tool that Zabuza had spent years creating. She was trained to not let her emotions betray her, and yet that was exactly what led her these days. She was told to not get attached to people, and she was acting like a lovesick fool. She was created to be an instrument for Zabuza to use as he pleased, and yet she was making her own choices; forging her own path. Everything she was now she owed to Naruto, and she would let him know soon.

She did pity the blond though. His treatment in the village hadn't improved in the slightest in the months since she arrived in the village. He know regularly wore his mask as he went about his daily duties, to avoid recognition. She sighed a little as she realised that mask served as both a literal and emotional mask. When he wore it, he was mentally pretending he was someone else. He was protecting himself from reality. She would make it her goal to assist with his goal; to be recognised and accepted by the village. Not as a mere tool, but as a partner... and hopefully a lover.

**-Underground Compound-**

Under the village hidden in the leaf, in a large underground compound, an elderly man with a bandaged eye and arm was sitting atop a small throne in an otherwise empty room pondering his duty to his village. On one hand, it was his duty to serve and protect the village and he had little qualms doing so... on the other hand, the leader of the village was weak and foolish and the pathetic will of fire than he preached was driving the village to its bitter end.

As if on cue, the same masked individual that had watching Naruto a mere moment ago appeared in front of him in a respectful crouch.

"I have done as you have asked Danzo-sama." The man said in a monotone voice. The man now identified as Danzo made no obvious movements other than a small wave of the hand to urge the man to continue.

"The Kyūbi Jinchūriki has spent the last two weeks training under Jiraiya of the Densetsu no Sannin. He has signed the Toad Contract. He has been able to summon the Toad boss summon. He has displayed very impressive control over the chakra of the Kyūbi. He also has the **Sh****ō****ton Kekkei Genkai** and an affinity for both **F****ū****ton** and** Doton**." The man said with no obvious emotions. Danzo just nodded and urged him to leave. He was surprised however when the man remained there.

"There is another relevant matter Danzo-sama." The man said, making Danzo furrow a brow before placing a hand under his chin and leaning somewhat lazily upon it.

"What is it?" He asked in a deadly tone.

"He has stated to have an intense emotional attachment to Haku Yuki, the girl he retrieved during his first C-rank mission." The man said. Danzo just nodded and waved him off again, only this time he really did leave. As soon as he was gone a massive smirk graced Danzo's features.

"A **Kekkei Genkai**, two nature affinities, control over his Bijū, the Uzumaki chakra and one of the legendary summoning contracts... he will make an excellent tool." Danzo said to himself darkly as his smile turned somewhat viscous. "As soon as I deal with that pesky attachment to the Yuki girl..." He finished with a deadly tone as he laughed maliciously in the silence of the compound.

**-****End-**

**Am I the only who find the time usage between the second test and the finals unusual? It somehow took an entire month for Naruto to learn summoning and summon Gamabunta... but according to the actual shown footage, it really didn't take that long. A month is a pretty damn long time.**

**So how was Jiraiya portrayed? How was everything in the chapter? Did I make out Haku to be too vulnerable, or was it alright? Feel free to let me know.**

**Anyway... Review, Favourite and/or Follow. **

**LiamMorg. Out.**

**Ja Ne!**


	13. The Days Roll by

**I don't own Naruto... I AM Naruto! HAHAHaHAhahHAha...ha...haa. Just kidding. Still don't own Naruto though... damn.**

**So, it seems as though the Danzo plot point was popular. Almost every review last chapter was regarding that little twist, so it's good to see I caught the attention of you guys with that.**

**Quote of the chapter/day: "While there are those who are afraid of the shadows, they must recognise shadows cannot exist without light. To be rid of one you must surrender the other. The two must live in harmony." **

**Chapter 13: The Days Roll by...**

**-Last Chapter-**

"_A **Kekkei Genkai**, two nature affinities, control over his Bijū, the Uzumaki chakra and one of the legendary summoning contracts... he will make an excellent tool." Danzo said to himself darkly as his smile turned somewhat viscous. "As soon as I deal with that pesky attachment to the Yuki girl..." He finished with a deadly tone as he laughed maliciously in the silence of the compound._

**-Start-**

Naruto awoke nightmare free for the first time in two weeks. He smiled deeply that he wasn't subjected to the torment once more while the fox in his mindscape simply huffed in irritation that his host had nightmares in the first place. It was both tiring and emotionally draining to constantly wake up after a nightmare that revolved around you killing everyone you hold dear.

The boy stood up and discretely crouched down to touch the ground. _'There's that chakra signature again... is someone stalking me?' _The blond thought to himself with a slight frown. He shrugged and went to shower; to allow the warm waters to wash away his worries and his filth. As the water surged upon him he just stared at the ceiling with an almost absent gaze. He was thinking about his newest teacher and how convenient it all was to be trained by a Sannin you just so happened to stumble upon.

"He trained the Yondaime and was trained by the Sandaime. He is regarded as one of the greatest ninja of our time... yet he trains me without much convincing. Is it because I'm a Jinchūriki? Does he want to improve the village's secret weapon? Is that all I am to these people? Was he made to do it by Jiji?" Naruto thought with a slightly sad frown. Nothing about it made sense... sure, he had a **Kekkei Genkai** and was a competent ninja... but the man wasn't even aware of the bloodline until near the end of their training. Maybe he had a soft spot for blonds with spiky hair and blue... eyes.

"Well, I guess I do resemble the Yondaime. Maybe I remind him of his lost student." Naruto said aloud, not even bothering to entertain the notion of there being anything between himself and his hero. Sure he resembled the man, but that didn't mean anything right?

He sighed as he turned off the water beating down upon him and got out of the shower before drying himself off and getting dressed before placing his mask on like normal. He quickly had few slices of toast and an apple before leaving. He didn't exactly have any plans for the day so he started to wander the village before he had an idea ans ran off.

**-Training Ground 10-**

Naruto had decided to track down Asuma to get some information – and even help if the man had time for it – on wind manipulation. The boy was aware Haku was planning on doing the same, which was slightly problematic but Naruto wasn't too worried, they had their own tricks. _'Especially with my summoning.'_ Naruto thought with a large grin.

As he jumped through the trees he eventually reached the training ground and decided to sit on his branch and observe when was already happening. It seemed Shikamaru was trying to come up with strategic ways of using his shadow by making use of objects and clever ways of making new shadows – such as making a small cut on the ground, thus forming a tiny shadow. He was sparring with Chōji to test these things out.

Asuma was overlooking them, but Naruto noticed Haku standing a few feet behind him with one of Asuma's chakra blades, creating a very messy and unrefined chakra flow using her wind chakra. _'She must've just started trying to shape her chakra into the wind nature...'_ Naruto mused while carefully observing the girl with a warm smile. As a Jōnin it didn't take long for Asuma to figure out Naruto was there, but he could tell that the boy wasn't doing anything harmful so he just waited for him to do whatever it was he was waiting for.

For his own amusement, Naruto subtly made a small earth spike emerge from the ground between Chōji and Shikamaru to create a new shadow. To the blond's expectations, Shikamaru immediately made use of this and captured a surprised Chōji before Naruto jumped down between them and gave a wave to them both. Shikamaru returned it and – due to the shadow mimicry – so did the Akamichi heir.

"I'm guessing you just made that shadow." The Nara boy asked, to which Naruto nodded with a perpetual smile. Shikamaru just shook his head and lay down muttering troublesome. The Akamichi pouted slightly at being teamed up against to which Naruto rubbed the back of his head and walked over to Asuma, while shooting a glance over to his teammate and changing expression for a mere moment before looking back at the Jōnin.

"Hey Asuma-sensei." Naruto said politely, making the man smirk and light a cigarette. Naruto sighed quietly at the action but didn't let it show. Shinobi were meant to be healthy and fit, so wasn't smoking a little counter-productive?

"Hey Naruto. I don't suppose you're here to spy on the competition are you?" He said with a small smirk, making Naruto chuckle before shaking his head.

"I guessed Shikamaru would be here but that wasn't why I came..." He said, making Asuma focus on the boy. "...I wanted to see if you could assist me with wind manipulation." He said, making Asuma smile at him.

"And here I thought I'd be able to keep one of my chakra blades today..." Asuma spoke, taking his other chakra blade and tossing it to Naruto. "...now, what you need to know to make wind chakra work effectively is that it's meant to be like two opposing chakra currents grinding together to make a sharp edge. Apply that theory into a chakra flow technique on the chakra blade and you should get a good idea how wind manipulation works." He said, placing a hand on his hip while his other held his cigarette. Naruto nodded in appreciation before walking over to his female teammate.

"Hey Haku-chan, long time no see." Naruto said somewhat jokingly, making her laugh slightly as she nodded. He noticed she seemed to be having some trouble with the exercise that was given to her. "...having trouble?" He asked with a neutral gaze. She nodded slightly as she spoke.

"I can't quite get the grinding effect down, I'm not sure what I'm actually doing wrong and neither is Asuma-sensei." She said with clear irritation. Naruto assumed she'd been at it for a little while and was getting tired of failure. Then an idea popped into his head.

"Do it again for me." He said as he closed his eyes and placed a hand on her shoulder. She lightly blushed from the contact but noticed his eyes were closed. She raised an eyebrow in confusion but complied anyway. As she tried it Naruto was able to see the way her chakra was flowing due to sensory. He smiled as he saw the issue.

"I'm not sure how to explain this... but the nature of the chakra isn't being applied correctly." He said, making her look at him expectantly. "...from what I can tell, since you have an affinity and a sub-element that are trained you'll need to learn to correctly filter out the unwanted elements. Think of it as a glass, you are currently pouring in three liquids while trying to use only one." He said almost sagely, patting himself on the back for the appropriate metaphor. Haku slightly gaped at him before sighing.

Naruto – having sufficiently helped the girl for now – decided to try it for himself. True to his words, as he channelled chakra into the blade while focusing on it, he could feel multiple natures all vying for attention. He calmed himself and focused his chakra into a sharp and more free flowing structure. He smiled as he noticed the **Doton** chakra immediately leaving the mixture but it seemed **Shōton **chakra's sharpness was going to make it the awkward one. He strained himself as he tried to force the free flowing chakra into there, as neither **Doton **nor **Shōton** were free flowing.

He felt the chakra finally settle into wind only and smiled to himself. He'd need to get acquainted with doing that easier, but for now he was making progress. The concept of chakra flow techniques intrigued him also, as there were potentially limitless things you could do with chakra flow.

_'I assume __**Doton**__ would increase weight, force and/or hardness... __**Shōton**__ would probably be force hardness and sharpness, depending on how it's used and __**Fūton**__ would be range, sharpness and speed.'_ He thought to himself with an almost giddy smile. He couldn't wait to learn Kenjutsu and apply these aspects to swordplay. Haku was just watching him curiously... since when did he have such grasp on chakra? How could he even tell what was going on with her own chakra?

She ignored it and began to try Naruto's filtering idea. She immediately noticed the result far closer than it was prior, but it still wasn't quite giving off the desired effect. She focused more until she felt it seem to settle how she pictured (Haku likely has much better control than Naruto). The girl smiled at finally achieving the desired result.

Naruto continued to focus his chakra to make it as perfect as he could before he spun on his heel and threw the blade at a nearby tree. It went about a quarter of the way through before stopping. Naruto had an analytical gaze plastered across his face as he noted what went right and wrong with that attempt. Asuma smirked at the quick progress he made before realising Naruto was walking towards him and holding out the chakra blade.

"You mind giving a demonstration of how much it should do when complete Asuma-sensei?" Naruto asked casually, making the man nod. Inwardly he was praising the blond's quick thinking, since too many Shinobi just kept at something without knowing just what they were doing. He channelled his chakra into the blade and threw it at a different tree, causing it to go right through and half way through a rock behind it.

"That wasn't the best I could do, but that should give you an idea of how it should be when complete." Asuma said, making Naruto raise his eyebrows and nod before walking over to retrieve the chakra blade. Haku meanwhile had managed to get the blade half way through a tree already, making Naruto adopt a competitive smile.

"How about a wager Haku-chan..." He said with a smirk as the girl looked over to him attentively. "...first one to get the blade through a tree gets lunch from the other." He said, not realising he'd basically asked for a date. She fought back a blush at the implications and just nodded making Naruto's smirk deepen as he focused on his blade.

_'Let's think for a second... it needs to be in a grinding motion, meaning I need to make the chakra sharp enough to grind, fast enough to do its job quickly and I need to make two separate chakra flows oppositely against one another...' _Naruto thought to himself with a slight roll of the eyes. _'That's a lot of work for so simplistic an exercise... though since when is chakra simple?' _He thought, his expression shifting to a smirk.

Using his assessment of the exercise he closed his eyes and drowned out everything except the exercise, his sensory ability making it far easier to tell what was happening. The effect was there, but whenever the blade would go through significant movement the chakra flow would begin to weaken or dilute. Whenever it actually left his hand the chakra flow would slowly diminish until it was completely gone.

He came to the conclusion the exercise was more about maintaining the field than focusing it to a stronger level. The level of the chakra flow was unimportant if it could not be maintained efficiently. Then of course came the issue of ensuring the chakra stayed potent after leaving the user's hand. To conclude, it was a very arduous task to complete all things considered.

_'First, mould and channel the chakra...'_ Naruto thought as the weapon began to glow with a slight blue light. _'Next, increase the sharpness and grind the chakra...'_ He continued as the weapon's glow became a more spectral blue and the chakra began to writhe. _'Now, increase the potency and contain the chakra.'_ He concluded as the chakra around the weapon stabilised and became constant. Naruto smiled as he threw the blade, making it go about three quarters of the way through a tree.

"Looks like it's just practice now." He mused aloud, making Haku smirk at him. Asuma was actually paying close attention to the two and it was safe to say he was surprised at the level of ease the two were having after Naruto cleared Haku's little problem up. It just went to show that the two Genin were far from normal. Haku managed to just nearly get her blade through a tree making Naruto frown slightly. _'Well, looks like I'm paying...' _He thought.

He quickly and accurately reapplied the chakra coating on the blade one more time and threw it, making it go all the way through. He almost jumped for joy before realising Haku's blade had already pierced her own tree. He sighed and went to pick up his blade. The girl walked towards him with a victorious smile as he rolled his eyes with a smile of his own.

"Looks like I won our little wager Naruto-kun." She said playfully, making Naruto laugh while nodding his head.

"I guess so..." He said, fiddling with Asuma's chakra blade in his hand. "...so, I'll be treating you tonight then." He said with a smile, still not quite grasping what he was implying. Haku just nodded before scurrying off so he wouldn't see her burning red face. "Wait a minute... Haku-chan we didn't agree on a time!" He shouted after her, but to no avail.

"Troublesome..." Naruto said, as he heard Shikamaru sneeze from across the training grounds making Naruto chuckle. He walked over to Asuma and held out the chakra blade which the man accepted with a smirk.

"Just remember, this is a special material..." Asuma said, making Naruto raise an eyebrow as he looked at the man. "...this chakra blade is made from materials that absorb chakra more easily so when you try and use the exercise with a... say, Kunai or something it'll be harder than it was today." He finished as Naruto nodded calmly. He looked around for his female teammate and love interest but saw no trace of her before shrugging and beginning to walk away before he remembered something.

"Hey, Asuma-sensei?" Naruto said, getting the man's attention. "You know any basic **F****ū****ton** Ninjutsu?" He said, making the man direct him to a more out of the way area.

"Sure... how about...** F****ū****ton Repp****ūshō (Wind Release: Gale Palm)**?" He said, making Naruto shrug his shoulders in indifference. It didn't really matter what he learned so long as he got started with **Fūton** Ninjutsu. Asuma just rolled his eyes mockingly at the reaction as he clapped his hands together and then proceeded fired off a blast of wind from his hands. Naruto raised an eyebrow seeing small cuts on several trees around them.

"As you can see, **Fūton** Ninjutsu generally revolves around fast, invisible and offensive techniques. It has little to no defensive techniques whatsoever due to the way wind works. There are exceptions to the rule of course, but the more common techniques follow these guidelines." The Jōnin said, making Naruto nod in compliance as he clapped his hands together and focused his chakra.

"**Fūton Reppūshō!"** He called out, before thrusting both his hands forward and causing an invisible gale to shoot forth from his hands. As if on cue, several large cuts began to form on the surrounding trees. Asuma was surprised by the level of damage he did with so simple a technique. _'Then again, the more chakra used the more powerful it becomes... and Naruto has plenty.'_ He thought to himself with a contemplative expression.

"Now, this technique as you can tell becomes more efficient the more chakra you use. It is usually used for supplementary reasons, such as speeding up ninja tools in flight or something like that." Asuma said, making Naruto nod as he continued to try it out. True enough to Asuma's words, the more comfortable and accustomed to the technique he became the more powerful it became.

"Hmm... let's try something..." He said getting the attention of Asuma – along with a certain masked individual in a tree nearby who was masking his chakra signature to ensure he was not detected by Asuma, since he wasn't aware Naruto was a sensor.

"**Kesshō: Rokkaku Shuriken!" **Naruto called out as several snowflake shaped Shuriken materialised around him and flew forward as he clasped his hands together and began to mould wind chakra.

"**Fūton: Reppūshō!" **He added, striking the flurry of Shuriken with a wind gale and increasing their already impressive speed dramatically. The effects were instantaneous and fearsome, almost all the Shuriken were capable of slicing right through any trees that got in their way and still maintain the speed to continue. Asuma quietly gulped at the sight, wind and crystal combination techniques were indeed fearsome.

"I almost feel bad for Shikamaru..." Asuma muttered, though Naruto heard him and let out a small snort of laughter. The masked individual in the tree began to note what he'd seen and was about to leave when a wind enhanced Kunai sped towards him, forcing him to flee. Naruto scowled, he'd not seen his target but he'd sensed that same chakra again and was certain the man/woman had escaped.

Asuma looked at him curiously, taking note of Naruto's annoyed, bordering angry stare that was directed at seemingly nothing. Naruto just growled and began to walk away, before turning around with his expression having completely shifted into a cheery one as he gave Asuma a slight bow.

"Thank you for your assistance Asuma-sensei." He said as he turned to leave a very confused Asuma. The man simply got out another cigarette, lit it and took a quick puff before sighing and shaking his head.

"Troublesome kid..." He said, as he heard Shikamaru sneeze.

**-Konoha Streets-**

It had been a long day for Naruto and he was surprised by how much he was able to cram into a single day. Then again, he'd never really had any issue learning things in the past... well, nothing Ninjutsu related anyway. The clone technique didn't count since that wasn't a learning issue, but a chakra issue.

So, this is why we find Naruto walking the streets as the sun begins to dim. He was walking towards his female teammate's house while keeping his sensory ability active just in case he passed her on the way there.

When he was alone walking the streets late in the day, Naruto couldn't help but marvel in the serenity and warm atmosphere the village contained. He didn't get to experience it as much as he would've liked due to his... problem, but that didn't stop him from enjoying it while he could.

Meanwhile, Haku was having a bit of an overreaction in her home. She had no idea how to react to basically being asked out on a date, of the many things Zabuza had taught her this was certainly not one of them! She wasn't even sure what type of lunch he was expecting, was it something casual or something more high class? What would he be wearing? What should she wear?

After slightly hyperventilating over the issue she managed to calm herself down to the point where she could think rationally. _'Alright, it's Naruto... he wouldn't try to overdo it for something he may not even consider a date, so just wear your regular clothes like he always does.' _She thought to herself as she looked in a mirror with a determined expression before banging her head against the desk.

_'Who would've thought that I'd stress so much over something so simple. Zabuza why couldn't you have taught me this stuff!?'_ She mentally exclaimed as she sighed and fixed her hair from her daily activities.

As Naruto neared Haku's house he suddenly felt a sense of... fear? He couldn't quite identify it, but it was almost as though his body was telling him to run as far away as possible. He furrowed his brows in confusion and mild annoyance as he continued walking towards the girl's house.

Then he had an epiphany. _'Crap, I didn't plan anything at all. Hmm... I wonder if she likes Ramen, I can kill two birds with one stone. I never said that the lunch was going to be anything important... then again, I kinda feel like it should be...' _He thought to himself in apprehension before he slammed his palm into his face and continued walking, much to the confusion of nearby civilians.

"**Kage Bushin no Jutsu."** Naruto muttered as a clone poofed into existence. He promptly placed his hand upon the shoulder of said clone before speaking. "Tell Ayame I'm heading over with Haku-chan and tell her not to try anything while we're there." He said, making the clone nod before running off as Naruto finished his journey towards Haku's house.

He went to knock the door, but found himself pausing nervously. _'Eh, what's wrong with me? I feel so strange right now...'_ He thought in more confusion. Pretending to focus on something else he managed to bring himself to knock the door, leaving a fidgety Naruto just waiting at the door. He inhaled deeply as he stood still as he could while waiting.

Haku opened the door to find Naruto standing perfectly still and looking far too serious for her liking. Fortunately, his expression quickly shifted to a smile, though a nervous one it may have been. She returned the smile with a blush as she grabbed her left arm with her right to give her hands something to do.

"You... uh, ready Haku-chan?" Naruto said, inwardly cursing for the unnecessary pause he took. To his joy, Haku just nodded with a smile which gave him all the answer he needed as he motioned her to come to his side. She did as instructed – not before walking out and locking the door – as the two of them walked to the Ramen stand with a small amount of awkward silence.

"So... where are we going?" Haku said, trying to seem as casual as possible. She was – unfortunately – completely incapable of removing the small pink tinge decorating her somewhat pale skin. Due to her complexion it was made all the more obvious too. Naruto however didn't mind in the slightest. He found her cute while blushing.

"Oh, a place called Ichiraku Ramen. I'm surprised we haven't gone there before now if I'm honest, I used to eat there all the time." He said, managing to lose his nervousness while they were talking about something he was familiar with. Haku just nodded and silently released a breath, thanking Kami that she wasn't under or overdressed.

"So, what's it like?" She said, though she quickly regretted it when she saw a gleam in his eyes that spelt either monologue or overly dramatic statement. Naruto decided to go with the latter.

"What's it like? It's only the food of the gods themselves, send down to earth to show us a small taste of heaven!" He exclaimed with surprising restraint so that passers-by wouldn't overhear him. Haku couldn't help but laugh at the ridiculous level of sincerity he actually put across in that sentence, it was almost as though he worshipped the food.

"Well on the bright side you make for a very effective living advertisement." She said between laughs, to which Naruto returned as he couldn't help but agree that it did sound like he was promoting the business.

"All I'm gonna say is wait until you've tasted Ichiraku Ramen, you'll never go back!" He said with anime tears running down his face, making the girl sweat-drop while shaking her head in exasperation.

"Whatever you say Naruto-kun." She said playfully, making him raise an eyebrow at her with mirth evident in his eyes. Due to his little outburst, the awkward atmosphere surrounding them completely evaporated and was replaced by a comfortable silence as the two walked towards their destination, as Naruto pointed out certain things of relevance as they passed them.

**-Ichiraku Ramen-**

As they finally arrived at their destination Haku found herself unconsciously sizing up the stand, something that Zabuza had taught her since the appearance was one of the most important things for a business or restaurant in the man's eyes. She smiled somewhat as she couldn't find much fault with it as Naruto just stared at her warmly.

She returned the gesture as Naruto pushed the covers out of their way to give way for their entrance. Naruto quickly spotted Ayame and gave her a small glare which said to behave herself to which the woman gained a somewhat devious gleam in her eye, causing Naruto's glare to intensify. Haku managed to catch the action and raised an eyebrow as Ayame's gaze crossed her inquisitively.

_'So, this is the girl that caught Naruto's eye... she's certainly pretty enough. She seems to have decent manners... Hmm, we'll see if I have to scare her off!'_ Ayame thought as her expressions shifted into a warm smile that was almost essential as a waiter. Haku returned her smile and looked over to Naruto who blinked a few times before a proverbial light bulb sprung to life.

"Oh, sorry... Haku-chan this is Ayame, my... sister figure I guess..." He said, making the girl give him a kind smile which he returned. "...Ayame this is Haku-chan, a _friend _of mine." He finished, stressing the friend part so Ayame didn't say anything stupid. Haku just raised an eyebrow at him while Ayame pouted.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Ayame-san. It's always nice to meet someone who treats Naruto-kun fairly." Haku said with no deception or doubt in her voice whatsoever. Ayame smiled at the girl's defensiveness of Naruto, which instantly improved her view of the girl. She also took note of the affectionate suffixes.

"Same to you Haku. It's nice that Naruto is finally getting some more _Girlfriends._ He didn't have much luck with them in the past... especially with that Sakura girl." She said, making Naruto's glare at her increase twofold. First, for the subtle girlfriend hint and secondly for bringing up Sakura. That reminded him, he'd need to check in on the girl soon.

"Uh... thank you?" Haku said with a little confusion while shooting an inquisitive glance at her teammate who just lightly shrugged in a 'don't question it' sort of way. Ayame continued to smile a little too sweetly at the pair making Haku rather uncomfortable when Teuchi walked over to see the two.

"Ah, Naruto my boy how are you?" He said happily to which Naruto smiled in return. Haku couldn't help but smile also at the friendly atmosphere between Naruto and the Ichiraku family. It seemed as though even in the darkest times they both had at least one person to care for them... even if Zabuza never did any emotional care.

"Teuchi, good to see you again old man!" He said, making Teuchi gain a noticeable tick mark on his forehead while his smile somewhat quivered in annoyance. Naruto chuckled at the man's expression while Haku just sighed and rolled her eyes playfully. Teuchi just looked at Naruto and Haku with a swinging gaze before a large smirk appeared on his face.

"So, what can we get you two?" He said, making Naruto order his regular while Haku just tried the first thing that caught her eye (I really have no idea what Ichiraku Ramen sells besides what Naruto has). Ayame and Teuchi left to fulfil the orders leaving the two young Shinobi alone in the standing

Naruto looked over at Haku with a smile that could have been interpreted as an amused smile. Haku simply shook her head and sighed while looking down a little, her smile betraying her attempt at an annoyed expression.

"So... what do think of Ayame?" Naruto said jovially, making Haku roll her eyes sarcastically with the smile still plastered across her face. She would admit the woman came across a little odd, but Naruto seemed fond of her so what could she say?

"She's nice, if a little odd. She made an adequate first impression." Haku said almost professionally. Naruto somewhat chuckled at her in depth answer to his rhetorical question. Then again he shouldn't expect Haku to be anything but interesting.

"Yeah she is a little strange, you'll get used to her if you stay around me long enough that's for sure." He said happily, to which Haku nodded. _'I plan to.'_ She thought to herself happily.

"Then I guess I'll be getting used to her wont I?" Haku said somewhat suggestively. Naruto gulped slightly and gave her a nervous laugh to which she smirked. _'He is so easy!'_ She thought with no small amount of amusement.

"I guess so..." Naruto blurted out, making Haku smile at him with her head tilted and eyes closed. He sighed in amusement at her somewhat fast attitude switch. While her eyes were closed, he was free to admire her beauty. She was pretty almost always, but when she truly smiled she was like a goddess in his eyes, as though she was made to become an avatar of beauty.

His downright ogling was cut short when Ayame came over and placed their meals in front of them, giving Naruto a massive and implicating grin which made him blush deeply and turn away from her. Haku opened her eyes to see Naruto turning away with his arms crossed and Ayame grinning like a mad man... woman.

"Well, here are you orders. Enjoy!" Ayame said with glee as she ran off back into the stand. Naruto sweat-dropped at her over the top attitude while Haku giggled cutely. Naruto once more just looked at her with a raised eyebrow and smirk and Haku once more turned away with a blush. It was sort of their thing.

As she was about to start eating he quickly grabbed her wrist with a smirk. "Be warned, once you've tasted this Ramen, you'll never be able to forget it." He said with an almost laughable level of severity. Haku repressed a laugh and just nodded before turning to her food once more and taking an experimental taste of a few noodles. Her eyes widened slightly at the amazing flavour.

"This is delicious..." She mused. She obviously wasn't as infatuated with it as the blond at her side was, but she still found it to be rather delectable. _'Still probably very unhealthy though, I'll have to make sure to only eat here once a week at most.'_ She thought to herself, though still thankful Naruto had introduced her to this new stand.

"Isn't it just?" Naruto said, getting a nod from her as she continued to eat. "Nobody can resist the allure of Ichiraku Ramen, it's the food of the gods!" Naruto said, anime tears running down his face once more. Haku face-faulted at the reaction as she ate.

Fortunately for... everyone Naruto had learned some table manners over the past few months meaning he wasn't just scoffing down the noodles like he was about to die of starvation, which likely would've put Haku off a considerable amount. As expected, she was eating with both grace and speed that befit her image in his mind.

He wasn't some sort of upper class snob who ate everything slowly and in a posh manner, since he still maintained a bit of his more uneducated side since he had a long twelve years to build it up. He ate with a level of refinement but also a little savagery. It deeply confused his 'date' as it seemed like two personalities were vying for control. One wanted to attack the meal like a ravenous beast while the other wanted to savour the taste like a gentleman. It really did seem odd.

Since Naruto still wasn't one to speak while eating there was very little conversation while the two enjoyed their meals. Haku finished a few minutes after Naruto – who had to fight to _not_get another bowl – and the two were left just chatting away the night.

Ayame or Teuchi would normally make a customer leave if he or she wasn't eating or doing anything that required being there, but they couldn't resist allowing them to stay to discretely listen in to the two. As far as Ayame was concerned, Haku was basically perfect for Naruto. The two of them got on excellently and just generally seemed comfortable around one another, something that was far more important than people would lead you to believe. Plus she noticed how the blond looked at Haku, which warmed her heart.

"Alright Ayame we'll be going now." Naruto said with a smile that threatened to break his face in two. Ayame just smiled and nodded to him before walking into the back of the stand. Naruto then stood offered Haku his hand to help her to get up, making her smile and take it. As he pulled her up their hands stayed together for a notice amount of time longer than necessary before Naruto retracted his hand and started walking, Haku following just behind him.

Then an idea struck him. "Hey Haku-chan have I taken you to my favourite spot in Konoha yet?" He asked, getting a confused expression from the girl which he interpreted as a no.

"Nothing you've specified as your favourite, no." She said neutrally making Naruto smirk and beckon her to stand nearer to him. She did so if a little nervously and Naruto wrapped and arm around her shoulder and placed his hand in the Ram sign as the two of them disappeared in a shower of crystals.

**-Hokage Monument-**

When they reappeared Haku found that she was seemingly higher up than she was before, with a long straight stretch of land before a cliff face. She walked forward a few paces as her eyes widened in surprise, they were atop the Hokage monument. She gasped at how majestic the village looked at this time of day; the various lights around the village painting a magnificent image, the stars twinkling in cooperation with this to increase the level of beauty it represented.

"It's beautiful..." She muttered quietly while drinking in the surroundings. Naruto was sat atop the head of the Yondaime with a smile on his face, his eyes closed as his senses drank in the various sensations this spot made him feel. It made him feel calm, safe... it made him review his outlook on life and allowed him to reaffirm his dream of becoming this village's leader; it's protector. To see it in such a light made it all the more precious to him and he would gladly lay down his life in service to it.

"This is what I – and now you too, Haku-chan – fight to protect..." He said quietly with a small but heartfelt smile. The girl looked at over at him with an even gaze "...just seeing it like this, in all its beauty and glory... it makes me realise just what it is I live for..." He continued as Haku sat beside him. "...this is the village I would gladly lay my life down for, just like the man beneath us..." He said, as Haku looked down to see the face of the Yondaime beneath them. "...the Yondaime is my idol... he represents everything I want to be; the protector of the leaf and its Hokage... the one who lives and dies so that everyone else in the village can go on." He finished as Haku looked at him with awe.

"How?" She said, as he turned to see her amazed but confused face. "How can you be so deeply invested in this village after all that it has done to you? How can you admit you'd die for them when they've scorned you so much?" She asked. She'd never spoken with such passion about anything, and her life was actually pretty good compared to his. She'd been with her parents happily for many years... and despite his quirks and heartless demeanour she could always rely on Zabuza.

"It isn't about the hate and anger they've directed at me..." He said as his face became serious and focused. "...it's about the affection and care the few people have given me. People like the Ichiraku family and the Sandaime, my team, Kakashi-sensei... my Kaa-san, and I assume my Tou-san..." He continued, as Haku began to smile admiringly at the positivity he was capable of showing. "...these seemingly inane and insignificant things, they've shown me what the people of this village are truly like under their misguided hate... without the fox within me, that's what they'd be like. I **WILL** fight for that. I will happily die for that image; that reality." He said with unflinching conviction. Haku felt somewhat dwarfed by his resolve and passion, but then again it was her dream to share in his own, and it seemed that would be a difficult road indeed.

He stood to his feet and swung his gaze slowly over the village, taking in every small aspect of the village he'd sworn to protect. He raised both his arms and swung them to his sides as though displaying the village to someone. "This is what I swear to protect, the village, the inhabitants, my precious people... all of it will never die so long as I breathe... and any who threaten _MY VILLAGE_ will regret it. I will become the leader of this great village; the Hokage and I will lead this village and broken world to peace." He finished as he let out a deep breath and sat back down with his eyes closed and a small smile on his face.

"In that case..." Haku said as she grabbed his hand. "...I guess I'll have to help you out wont I?" She said softly as she smiled and looked into her eyes. Naruto smiled back at her and raised his hand to brush across her soft cheek. She closed her eyes and leaned into his warm and gentle touch as he continued to rub a thumb over her cheek making her sigh in comfort. As Naruto continued his ministrations the situation settled in for both of them.

There was no avoiding the subject anymore, it was a now or never moment. While both of them cared deeply for the other neither were certain of their partner's intentions; neither knew how deep the feelings went. Naruto felt his heart rate quicken; his breathing becoming a little faster as he shakily retracted his hand. Haku opened her eyes and stared into his own, feeling herself get lost in their almost glowing depth.

They both began to slowly shift their seating positions to completely face the other, never letting their eyes leave the other. Haku decided to be a bit more bold than Naruto; quickly and thoughtlessly placing herself in his lap as his eyes widened a little in surprise. She snaked her arms around his neck as he held her waist, their faces barely apart at this point.

Naruto moved his head forward... not towards her lips, but to the side of her head so that his mouth was now near her ear; his nervous and warm breath making her shiver slightly in joy. He bit his lip before talking.

"Haku-chan..." He said lowly, his tone being somewhat sensuous. Haku closed her eyes as she suppressed a moan that came up from his tone alone. He somewhat smirked, as he barely caught her reaction.

"Y-yeah N-Naru...to-kun...?" She stuttered out, making him slightly run his hand up her back in a comforting manner, to ease her tension.

"Do you want this?" He continued, making her gulp as she tried to interpret what level of intimacy he was referring to. She decided to bite the bullet and answer.

"Yes." She said almost submissively. As if on cue, Naruto moved his face in front of her own once more, their breath warmly colliding with the other. Haku felt her heart threatening to erupt from her chest while her face felt like it may melt off. Her lips were quivering from the proximity to the blond, as if they were demanding that she connect them.

Naruto placed his hand on her cheek once more, running his fingers through her soft black hair. Her lips were naturally a scarlet colour that only served to entice him to her more. To be honest, the blond was shocked she had such little attention from guys their age. She was a catch if there ever was one. Beautiful, clever, well trained, professional and kind. There were few like her, if any.

Not being able to take any more waiting, she began to lean in slowly and enticingly, as though to ensure he had plenty of time to mentally beg for it. The two closed their eyes as the distance began to turn to nothingness. Then their worlds stood still as they merged together; their lips colliding at a slight angle to give the most leeway.

The results were almost instantaneous, a strong almost electrical surge through their bodies as though they were in a lightning storm. The feeling shot through them like a wild animal, spreading the pleasure of the action across their forms. Haku promptly wrapped her arms around his neck as he did the same around her back.

Neither of the two had any experience in these matters – if you exclude Naruto and Sasuke's... incident – so they were both running on instinct. Fortunately for the two, neither of them were mentally stable enough at the moment to think about what to do, since their bodies were doing it for them. Their lips continued the move and plant against one another, occasionally pulling back for the smallest of time to initiate another kiss.

Haku moaned into the blond's mouth as the two continued to mash their mouths together, the two of them not even giving a moment of thought to the necessity of oxygen. The kiss between the two was soft but passionate, as the two finally got to release their pent up feelings for the other in this very moment.

Naruto was unable to think clearly, his mind a haze from the pleasure and joy he felt having the girl of his desire having accept him like this, as more than they were. Her lips were unbelievably soft... if he had to compare it to something else it would be clouds, or at least his personal interpretation of how clouds felt. He was enjoying the every second he spend melded with her face. He could smell the sweet fragrance of her hair on the wind, bringing him further joy.

Haku was a lot more in control of her thoughts, which meant that she was beyond overjoyed at the moment. She actually felt a few tears threaten to spill in pure happiness, the blond ball of joy having the same feelings she did made her feel warm; safe. She also felt incredibly glad the blond was who he was... the simple fact that he'd asked her if she wanted to do this rather than just go ahead showed how kind a heart he really had. Speaking of hearts, she could feel both their heartbeats at this proximity, and they were equally fast.

While neither of them really had any issues with doing this prior to it, they both felt any traces of doubt vanish the moment they collided, the almost electrical surge of passion washing away any inhibitions.

As time went on, the embrace began to heat up. Their lips beginning to violently mash up against the other as though they were fighting for dominance as they both crushed their forms up against the other. Naruto could feel the girl's chest up against his and it only served to help arouse him more. Haku began to grip his hair in one of her hands and Naruto ran one of his own through her long black, free flowing hair.

The two eventually realised that air was a necessity that not even a moment as intimate as the one they found themselves in could ignore. They broke apart – a string of saliva connecting the two as their lungs begged for oxygen. The two breathed deeply while staring at the other intently with their faces mirroring their glee. The smile on the face of the other was all the two of them needed to tell them what the other was thinking. While Naruto's smile was one of slight dizziness and joy, Haku's was an almost adoring smile directed at Naruto.

The young girl brought her hand up to her lips and found them to be slightly swollen and still trembling, as if they were disappointed that the embrace had to end. _'That... I can't describe it. It was everything I wanted it to be and more... Kami I just want to tackle him and start over.' _She thought to herself with no small amount of happiness. The feeling was almost indescribable, as though the entire world was suddenly perfect and that nothing could ever ruin the moment. She noticed Naruto's smile and blushed but continued to look at him with her own smile. Suddenly he pulled the girl towards him to give her a soft embrace. She sighed into it as they both finally came down from cloud nine.

"That was wonderful Naruto-kun..." She whispered as she leaned on his shoulder with her eyes closed. The boy just nodded as he leaned onto her head slightly in an attempt to further improve the atmosphere – if that were possible.

"I know, it was perfect... you're perfect..." He said confidently, his voice becoming a whisper as he finished, making her heart jump for joy as it started beating faster to keep up with her surging emotions. She couldn't contain the tear that fell from her eye nor the slight sniffle that escaped her, neither being from sorrow.

Naruto leaned back slightly and wiped away the tear while smiling warmly at her, his eyes clearly displaying that she was the only thing on his mind at the moment. Good thing they were in the confines of the village, otherwise they could've easily been ambushed.

"F-flatterer." She sniffled out. "You're just saying that because I let you kiss me." She said playfully, the joy in her tone not getting past the quick blond.

"Maybe I am..." Naruto replied with just the same level of playfulness. "...but, your lips belong to me now." He said jokingly, as a giggle escaped her.

"Same to you Naruto-kun." She said with fondness, to which Naruto nodded as they both just settled into the moment, as the sun went down behind them. Both were far too engrossed with the other to notice a shadowy figure sneaking off nearby.

**-A Few Days Later-**

As the week neared its end, Naruto was at home simply pondering it's events with a small frown on his face. He couldn't deny that he was beyond happy at how it had begun, but after the initial surge of happiness Haku and he had decided not to get too invested in their relationship until the finals ended. While the both of them were a little unhappy about this neither of them could fault the decision, their relationship would get in the way right now. Since that was Naruto's original plan he was the one who suggested it, much to his internal ire.

He'd spent the majority of the time working on wind manipulation. Now that he'd gained a good grasp of how wind chakra worked he had begun the leaf cutting exercise, which he found to be considerably harder than the rock crushing exercise – presumably due to his powerful earth affinity that led to the **Sh****ōton**.

Haku and him had split themselves apart during their training time, since they would be showing the other their rough skill level if they remained in proximity during training for too long. It certainly helped Naruto focus more during training – not having a pretty face to distract him – but it also served to allow him to get rather bored. Training alone wasn't fun, at least he had Jiraiya the first two weeks.

He'd also forced himself to start going over some Fūinjutsu scrolls. The blond had to admit that it was an incredibly complex art, so it was no wonder the Uzumaki clan were feared if they had the utmost mastery of it. He found that the symbols and sealing matrices seemed to 'call' to him, as though they were in his mind already. He chalked this up to being an Uzumaki, and Fūinjutsu was just in his blood. He had made very little progress, not having the time to learn such a complex art in such a small amount of time, especially since it was nothing like any other ninja art he knew about. He'd just started to draw out non-functional copies of basic seals such as storage seals to get a feel for it and improve his accuracy and speed while drawing the seals, since they could have dire results with the slightest mistake – something he wasn't looking forward to.

"_**Can I just say it's about damn time you kissed the vixen?"**_ Kurama spoke from inside Naruto's head, making him fall out of his bed. He and the fox hadn't spoken for a week, not out of ignorance but just lack of reason to talk. Naruto despite everything did enjoy talking to his captive, but the fox wasn't one you could approach without some basis.

"_Dammit... can't you, I don't know... get something to tell me you're about to talk so you don't scare me half to death?" _Naruto replied, making his Bijū companion snort.

"_**If you get scared that easy I think you chose the wrong profession mortal." **_ The fox replied dryly making Naruto roll his eyes before a tick mark appeared on his forehead.

"_Are you ever going to stop calling me that?"_ He asked with clear irritation.

"_**Probably not.**_" Kurama stated plainly, making Naruto run a hand through his golden spikes. The fox sure knew how to get on his nerves, that was for sure.

"_Whatever... I didn't realise you were so invested in my love life, Kurama." _Naruto said with a smirk, finally having something to use against his ageless companion. The fox just rolled his eyes and growled a little sarcastically at his prison.

"_**I have to be invested in something related to you since I live inside you! Your relationship with the vixen is simply the most interesting, if a little too emotional for my taste." **_The fox stated. Naruto couldn't exactly find fault with the fox, since it was true the range of topics Kurama could invest himself in were limited to his lifestyle.

"_I guess that makes sense..." _Naruto said, before he paused to think about something. _"...and start calling people by their names dammit!"_ Naruto growled out, making Kurama let out a small huff of amusement.

"_**Why should I?" **_The great fox questioned as Naruto attempted to retort.

"_Because..."_ The blond started as he took a thinking pose before throwing his hands up in the air. _"...because it's polite furball!" _He shouted at the fox making it roar at him.

"_**Stop calling me that!" **_Kurama shouted, making Naruto laugh derisively.

"_Oh sure, you're allowed to decide what people call you." _Naruto said, making the fox blink a few times before he realised he was being a hypocrite.

"_**I will not be outsmarted by a thirteen year old moron!"**_ He shouted at Naruto, who just smirked in victory before he heard a knock at his door.

"_Guess we have to end our little conversation furball, I have a visitor." _Naruto said, cutting the mental link just after he heard the fox smash one of the bars on its cage in anger. _'Too easy foxy.'_ He thought to himself.

He walked over to his door before taking a moment to check the chakra signature. To his surprise, it was rather similar to his own, but it actually seemed a little more potent; more powerful. He shrugged as he opened the door to see a blur of red tackle him into a hug. Naruto blinked repeatedly until he realised who it was.

"Ah Karin-chan, nice to see you again." Naruto spoke as the girl detached herself from him with a large smile. He couldn't help but take note of her strong chakra, since that was apparently the reason his mother had the unique chakra chains which – to his knowledge – he did not retain.

"Hey Nii-san, I finally managed to move here!" She exclaimed happily, making Naruto give her a genuine smile in return as he ushered her in.

"That's great, so your village leader was OK with it, or was he angry?" Naruto asked as he poured her a glass of water that she accepted with a nod.

"He was alright I guess... he was disappointed that he'd lose a skilled sensor but he understood that family was important." She said somewhat downtrodden. She had liked her village, but her clan was far more important to her.

"I see. Did Jiji give you any trouble when you tried moving here?" He asked, making her tilt her head in confusion. "Oh, sorry... I mean the Hokage." He said. She widened her eyes at the proclamation that Naruto thought of the Hokage as his 'Jiji' but decided not to pry into his affairs.

"Not really, he actually seemed quite happy when I said I was related to you." She said, as Naruto smiled softly at the old man's reaction. Underneath the Hokage title he was just a kind hearted old man who Naruto cherished greatly – despite the fact he'd hidden Naruto's parentage from him. If Naruto was still half as kind and strong as him at that age, he'd be set.

"That old softie..." Naruto chuckled out, making Karin grin at him. "...so, any idea where you'll be staying?" He asked as she took a thinking pose.

"Well I could afford an apartment around this size... but couldn't we ask for a clan compound?" She replied somewhat naively. Naruto actually laughed rather loudly at this, making her fume until he calmed himself down.

"Yeah right, a clan compound for two 13 year old kids... that'll go well." Naruto replied as Karin crossed her arms in annoyance. "...maybe once we're a bit older, but for now I don't think we'll get away with it... not with my reputation." He said seriously as Karin turned her attention to him.

"Whaddya mean Nii-san?" She asked as Naruto sighed in exasperation. He'd really need to be more careful with how he worded things.

"OK... long story short I have the Kyūbi no Kitsune sealed inside me." He said casually and with noticeable irritation. Karin gasped and just stared at him. He rolled his eyes, unzipped his jacket and pulled up his mesh shirt to reveal his seal. She quickly looked it over with an investigative gaze, making the blond wonder if she was knowledgeable in Fūinjutsu.

"Well... the seal seems... good." She said, honestly having no idea how strong his seal was. The thing she did know was that it was a very complex seal and chances are that meant it was also good at what it was made for.

"That's it? No fear or worry... just... that?" Naruto said sceptically. Karin chuckled slightly as she pushed her glasses up her face.

"I didn't grow up here remember. I don't have an irrational fear of the Kyūbi, as long as it's sealed we'll be fine, right?" She said, to which Naruto just nodded with a small smile.

_**'Pfft, if the Yondaime didn't seal my other half into himself I could easily escape... probably.'**_ The giant fox boasted... to itself.

"So, are you a Genin of Konoha now?" He asked, to which she let out a small shrug.

"Not exactly... they said they would evaluate my skill set and decide if I was good enough. Then they'd find me a team." She said with irritation. Naruto just smiled somewhat apologetically at the girl before an idea came to mind.

"When is this evaluation?" He asked, making her become serious again.

"About a week or so after the exams... why?" She asked, as Naruto grew a large smirk.

"I could help you train after the exams if you want, what are big brothers for?" He said. Karin gained a large smile at this. She was pretty glad that Naruto had stumbled across her in the forest of death, now she had a family again.

"That'd be great Nii-san!" She said excitedly, making Naruto chuckle at the girl's antics. She sorta reminded him of... himself, before he revised his attitude, but not in a bad way. She had the energetic attitude and happy demeanour... maybe it was an Uzumaki thing.

"Alright then, now I'm heading over to the hospital to visit a friend of mine, you can tag along if you like." Naruto said, as she nodded happily. "...good, now my friend was injured considerably and still in a coma so be respectful will you?" He said seriously, as she nodded again with a more even face.

**-At the Hospital-**

They arrived in the hospital after a small stop on the way there. Apparently Karin in all her feminine glory decided it was a good idea to pick up some flowers to put in Sakura's room. Naruto wasn't exactly opposed to the idea, but Karin was so damn specific about what flower would go well with the situation it made the blond want to hang himself.

They walked up to the front desk to see a woman writing on some documents that were assumable about patients or something like that. As they stopped in front of her Naruto gave a polite cough to get her attention. She looked up and gave a small smile as required by the position.

"Ah hello, how can I help you two?" She asked, to which Naruto smiled at her.

"I was wondering if I could see Sakura Haruno." He said politely, to which she looked at another document and furrowed her brows as she looked for the relevant information.

"Hmm... it seems as though she is accepting visitors right now. She actually woke up a few days ago." The woman said casually, making Naruto's eyes widen.

"She's awake?!" He said as quietly as he could in the situation, making the woman nod and point them in the right direction. Naruto nodded in appreciation before dragging Karin along kicking and slightly screaming.

They arrived at Sakura's room in a small skid as Naruto attempted to stop himself breaking through the door with his momentum. He suddenly took a deep breath and knocked the door, hearing a feminine mumble in return. Naruto took that as a sign to enter and opened the door slowly to see his pink haired teammate on her feet near the window. He smiled brightly that she was finally awake.

"Sakura! You're finally awake." Naruto said with a cheerful and pleased expression. The girl just turned around and gave him a half true smile in return. Naruto caught this and his smile dimmed noticeably.

"Hey Naruto, good to see you." She said somewhat absently. Naruto's smile fully disappeared at this and became a serious but neutral expression.

"What's wrong Sakura?" He asked softly, as Karin just sat down on a chair in the corner of the room and began reading something, knowing this conversation didn't involve her.

"It's been so long... I've missed everything." She said sadly. Naruto frowned in a downcast fashion, now understanding the issue.

"You're upset that so much has come and gone since you've been in a coma, right?" He said softly, as she just nodded her head and sat on her hospital bed. Naruto hadn't thought of what she'd missed, only that she'd awakened so this was a little mind opening for him, since a lot had happened since she was injured.

"Ino came by recently... she told me everything that's happened. You have a **Kekkei Genkai**, Haku replaced me on Team 7 for the Chūnin exams, Sasuke is like your best friend now... it feels like I've been left behind and forgotten." She stated. Naruto shook his head adamantly. He may not have let her injury depress him too much but that didn't mean he had forgotten about her.

"We didn't forget about you Sakura... (I – the writer – did) we've just been doing our best to keep living despite your injury. I assure you we were all really worried." He said honestly, making the girl smile over at him. Naruto was a good friend, she regretted being so mean to him when they'd started Team 7.

"Thanks Naruto, I needed to hear that..." She said, as she looked over at Karin. "...so, who's your friend?" She said a little suggestively, making Naruto's eye twitch. Now that he and Haku were an unofficially official couple little jabs like that were going to get on his nerves.

"Nothing like that Sakura... this is Karin-chan, my sister... sort of." He said, making Sakura drop her jaw and Karin smile deeply that he was willing to publicly call her such. It was going to be weird describing the siblings but not siblings thing to everyone, but it was something they were willing to do.

"You... have a sister?!" She all but screeched, bringing Naruto back to her 'Banshee' days. He really hated Banshee Sakura.

"No, that's why I said 'sort of'. She's a family – or more specifically a clan – member that I stumbled across during the Chūnin exams. I thought it was best we simply consider us siblings seeing as how our clan is all but extinct." He said professionally, making Sakura nod attentively before smiling at him.

"I'm glad you finally found some family Naruto..." She said, making him smile heartily at her. "...nice to meet you Karin." She said, walking over to the girl and offering her hand. The two girls then shook hands and began to speak in what Naruto dubbed as 'girl language', since it was almost unintelligible to him. He zoned out until he felt some strange sensation wash over him.

"_**I sense Shukaku nearby... he's up to something."**_ Naruto's foxy companion said, as Naruto noticed his 'Negative Emotions Sensing' ability was picking up the boy like a beacon. He activated his normal sensory ability and detected Gaara right next to...

"Lee!" Naruto shouted as he bolted from the room, leaving two confused females to ponder his actions.

"What was that about?" Sakura said, making Karin shrug.

"No idea." She replied, as the two of them went back to what they were talking about.

Naruto arrived in the room to see Gaara swirling his sand around Lee as it slowly began to encroach upon his face, while wheezing like he was in pain for some odd reason. As he was about to make a move to help Gaara suddenly froze in place. Naruto raised an eyebrow and turned to see Shikamaru using his shadow to stop the Suna Shinobi.

"I heard you sprinting through the halls from Chōji's room and figured I'd check what was going on... pretty lucky I guess." Shikamaru said with a rare level of focus to which Naruto nodded and turned back to Gaara with an angry stare.

"So, didn't beat him hard enough in the Exams is it? Needed to come and finish the job?" Naruto said angrily to which Gaara stayed in silence, further agitating the blond. If there was one thing Naruto hated, it was attacking a defenceless individual.

"I was going to kill him." Gaara said dryly, making Shikamaru take a step back in surprise while Naruto's gaze became less angry and more disgusted.

"Yeah I gathered that you creepy sandman. Why is the question." Naruto stated as Shikamaru looked over at him with confusion, expecting Naruto to be well... less methodical.

"There is no reason, he failed and as such must die. If you two interrupt me you'll join him." Gaara said as though it was clear as day. Naruto let a small fraction of Kurama's chakra leak out as he spoke.

"**Try it, and I'll crush you."** He said in a demonic voice, making Shikamaru step away from him in surprise and fear while Gaara widened his eyes at the proclamation.

_'What is this I feel? Is this... fear?'_ Gaara thought to himself, having never truly been afraid of another individual before but this boy... he was something different, just like him. He shook it off silently and continued.

"Why must you protect him?" Gaara stated in an emotionless tone. Naruto snorted at the boy, not believing that he was this emotionally stunted that he couldn't understand why they'd protect a comrade.

"Are you really that messed up you psycho?" Shikamaru stated, as Gaara looked at him like he was stupid. "What kind of life could make you this crazy?" He continued, as Gaara looked almost amused.

"My life? My life has been one of a monster. Before I was even born a monster was sealed inside me by my own father... its name was Shukaku. Upon my birth my mother died. I was born a killer; a monster." Gaara stated as Naruto frowned sadly, it was hard to hold a grudge against someone who'd literally been raised a killer.

(Insert Gaara sob/back story and motives, insert Naruto and Shikamaru's surprise. I can't be bothered to write it.)

_'So this is what he came up with...'_ Naruto thought to himself. _'…while I decided to prove myself to the village and become accepted by others... he chose... this. This was the road I avoided, the road of the monster. I... almost want to help him.'_ He continued with an even gaze on Gaara. Then his sand began to move again as though he wasn't restricted at all.

Naruto began to move his hand in a defensive movement when Gai appeared and broke it up. Gaara clutched his head and began to wheeze as his sand retracted into his gourd. He then walked out with a death threat lingering in the air. Naruto sighed and shook his head while Shikamaru just let out a breath he'd been holding.

"What a guy..." Naruto muttered, making Shikamaru nod as they walked back to Sakura's room. The two girls present in the room looked to the door as they entered with confused stares. Naruto just waved his hand in dismissal while Shikamaru was surprised than Sakura was up and didn't know who Karin was.

"Sakura... you're awake?" He said, as she nodded at him, as he gave her a small smile. "...and, who are you?" He said somewhat disrespectfully. Naruto and Karin both gained a tick mark at the way he phrased his question as Naruto answered once more.

"Karin. My sister." Naruto stated dryly as Shikamaru dropped his jaw while Sakura and Karin grinned internally at his confusion.

"I thought you were an only child... and an orphan!" He shouted as Naruto lay on Sakura's bed lazily, much to the girl's ire.

"I am." He replied, inwardly struggling to hold his laugh in as Shikamaru seemed to try his hardest to make sense of the situation.

"...but you said she was your sister!" Shikamaru said once more, his confusion becoming more and more obvious as he spoke.

"She is." Naruto said, as Shikamaru face palmed in annoyance.

"But I-" He said, as Karin cut him off.

"Alright that's enough Nii-san. I'm not technically his sister, but we are related and neither of us have any other family so we thought it was for the best to think of each other as siblings." Karin said, making Shikamaru's brain put it all together before he glared at Naruto for intentionally confusing him. Naruto just laughed heartily, both of them having already forgotten about their issue with Gaara.

"Anyway, I have some things that need doing. Karin-chan, you want to tag along or stay here?" Naruto asked, not realising he was already starting to become a protective sibling by ensuring she had limited options.

"I'll stay here and talk to Sakura if it's alright." She said, making Naruto nodded happily, glad she was making friends already. He then gave a small wave as he used the **Shunshin** to leave, surprising Karin with the crystal effect it left behind along with Sakura.

"Pretty..." Karin mused absently. Sakura gave her a somewhat sly smirk as Karin blushed and turned away. Shikamaru muttered something along the lines of 'troublesome', making Sakura growl at him as he walked out and the girls resumed their chatting.

**-One Day Prior to the Finals-**

Naruto had spent the last week of his one month preparation time to round off his skills and do some research about his opponents. He researched the **Byakugan**, the **Sharingan **and he tried to find some form of documentation about sand manipulation, unfortunately coming up empty. He did however, find documentation of **Jiton (Magnet Release)** where several noteworthy individuals had used it to create sand like effects not too different to Gaara's style.

Though he felt a little dirty doing so, he also researched the **Hy****ōton**, though not finding much other than Haku's mirror jutsu which was apparently the Yuki clan's signature technique. To his surprise he couldn't find anything on the **Shōton**. He figured his bloodline was simply exceptionally rare. He found passing mentions of strange pink substances being found around battlefields, usually surrounded by bodies. He guessed that the people or person who created them slaughtered their opponents with its full power.

He sighed, fiddling with a few crystal balls that he tended to create when he was thinking about things to simply play around with in his hands. He wondered just how powerful his **Shōton** was; how much potential it had left. It annoyed him to no end that he never had anyone to use as an example. Maybe if whoever his father was had survived... then again, Kakashi stated his father didn't have it. At least Sasuke had information from his clan archives about the **Sharingan** and Neji still had a fully functioning clan to use as inspiration.

Then there was Shino and Shikamaru. The two of them didn't have **Kekkei Genkai** in the normal sense, but the unique abilities of their clans could easily be interpreted as such. Shikamaru's shadow techniques for example, actually made use of **Inton (Yin Release)**. While the ability wasn't a **Kekkei Genkai**, usage of either Yin or Yang was a difficult exercise. Shino's usage of insects wasn't so much of a problem for Naruto, as their tiny size allowed them to be crystallized with ease. He'd discovered that ability trying to swat a fly away from him and accidentally using chakra, resulting in a pebble sized crystal containing a fly.

Temari and Kankuro were different. Temari – as a wind user – was in a slight disadvantage against Naruto since he could use his own wind techniques along with the highly defensive **Doton **and very versatile **Shōton**. Kankuro relied on his puppetry techniques and Naruto was certain he could crush the boy easily if the puppets were his only trick. A simple chakra-infused Kunai would cut straight through the chakra strings that controlled the puppets – another thing Naruto had researched.

Dosu was an odd one, since sound-based Ninjutsu seemed like a very recent thing – originating with Otogakure, to be precise. Then again, Naruto didn't really think he needed much assistance to beat the boy, since he was a bit of a one-trick-pony.

The use of the **Kage Bushin** allowed Naruto to easily find whatever books or documentation he was looking for, so time wasn't really an object during Naruto's research. He smirked as he used the word 'research', thinking back to his newest sensei's sick usage for the word. He didn't like the pervy attitude, but he dealt with it.

He and Karin had also discussed Fūinjutsu, which Naruto strongly believed the two of them should learn to honour the clan they were born into. Karin – to Naruto's joy – was immediately on board with the idea. It seemed as though she was a rather family oriented girl, so she wanted to honour the memory of her clan by ensuring its traditions continued on.

Naruto had also received the addition to his outfit that he'd ordered a while back, and was rather pleased with it. It definitely would get a nice reaction anyway, even if he did feel like a bit of a copy-cat while wearing it.

One thing was for certain, the finals would be a spectacle to behold.

**-****End-**

**So, the chakra flow issues I mentioned... these are not taken from canon so I was wondering if they sound believable? I figure having a natural affinity for 2 elements and 1 sub-element will naturally make it harder to focus a specific one since your chakra will try to adjust to these on its own.**

**Okay, the relationship wasn't originally going to start here but it seemed appropriate. **

**Also, turns out it's pretty damn hard to get their feelings across accurately without resorting to the cliché "I love you." 5 seconds into the relationship. Those two are too young for love and so is their relationship, it needs time to flourish.**

**I'm strongly considering giving Naruto the chakra chains, but I am really unsure whether I should. I've given Naruto a lot as it is, so I'm unsure whether he needs more. If you want him to have it, feel free to say so.**

**Anyway... Review, Favourite and/or Follow. **

**LiamMorg. Out.**

**Ja Ne!**


	14. The Finals Commence

**I don't own Naruto... Haku does, and he likes it.**

**Alright, going through the reviews it seems more people are against the chains than are for it. Sorry to those who wanted it but the majority did specify to do crystal chains instead, so that'll probably happen.**

**Quote of the chapter/day: "Behind a perfectly normal face can lay a demon in waiting. Therefore trust should never be given – but earned – lest you find yourself betrayed." **

**Chapter 14: The Finals Commence**

**-Last Chapter-**

_Naruto had also received the addition to his outfit that he'd ordered a while back, and was rather pleased with it. It definitely would get a nice reaction anyway, even if he did feel like a bit of a copy-cat while wearing it. _

_One thing was for certain, the finals would be a spectacle to behold._

**-Start-**

It was now the day of the finals. Naruto and the other contestants were finally going to show the fruits of their labour; the effects of their training and determination. The blond couldn't wait to finally have a chance of becoming a Chūnin, it seemed almost fictional to him that he could improve in rank so early in his Shinobi career, but here he was.

He hadn't had much success sleeping the night before until he managed to shift his thoughts to less exciting things. Fortunately for him, he felt well rested despite his short sleeping cycle. The last thing he needed was to be tired before he even did anything, especially since he was first against the Hyūga prodigy... or so he was called.

Naruto went about his morning rituals before getting dressed, donning the new part of his attire with a large grin. He had plenty of time to get ready, and he was aware that wasting time would make him late so he didn't do anything unnecessary. He already made a plan with Jiraiya to make his entrance a little more... interesting. He grabbed his mask as he approached the door and made his way out.

**-At the Stadium-**

Most of the fighters were assembled and ready in the stadium, all but Naruto, Sasuke and Dosu (one of which wouldn't turn up at all). Haku and Sakura were getting a little worried the two of them may not arrive, while Karin – who was with Sakura and Ino in the stands – was just worried about Naruto.

"Where could Nii-san be?" Karin said while looking around the arena. Sakura sighed and shook her head while Ino just frowned.

"I have no idea, but if he and Sasuke-kun don't turn up then they'll get disqualified." Sakura said, making Karin frown while Ino just sighed.

"I still can't believe Naruto has a sister, technicality or not." Ino said. Karin just smiled somewhat at the girl while Sakura nodded in approval.

Haku in the arena was just doing her best to seem confident. Ever since she'd stopped wearing her mask at all times she noticed she got nervous more often, though that could've just been the fact that thousands of people would be watching her.

_'Where could he be? He better not be a no-show... '_ Haku thought somewhat deviously, thinking up ways to punish him if he weren't to arrive in time.

Then there was a large poof of smoke in the centre of the stadium that grabbed the attention of just about everyone. As it began to clear two figures became visible within it, with a large mass below them. It fully cleared to reveal Jiraiya of the Sannin – a big enough surprise for most of the Shinobi present – standing atop a toad with a crouched figure next to him.

The crouched figure was wearing a long, black, high collared and short sleeved Haori with blue wave patterns adorning the bottom of it, with the Uzumaki spiral depicted on the upper back, with a red almost crystalline fox spiralling around it. Around the collar it had the kanji for 'Crystal Fox of Konoha'. The individual was also wearing a red mask with the kanji for 'Nine'.

The individual in question then stood slowly to his feet and jumped off the toad to land before the other competitors, before removing his mask slightly to the side to reveal a single blue eye and a few whisker marks while giving a small smirk.

"Am I late?" Naruto said, as the crowd along with several competitors stood pretty much dumbstruck. _'Oh yeah, that entrance was worth the time it took to set up.'_ He thought to himself. Genma Shiranui – the replacement proctor – shook himself out of his daze and shook his head to say he was on time.

Up in the crowds Karin was basically bouncing in her seat upon seeing her brother be so cool. Sakura just smiled and shook her head while Ino actually had the decency to gawk at the entrance. It was pretty cool.

Haku gave him a quick once-over before turning away to hide the blush that appeared on her face. He looked very attractive to her at the moment, and she was having trouble containing her excitement at seeing him. Naruto then turned to Jiraiya.

"Thanks for the help Jiraiya-sensei, you can go now." Naruto said with a wave, making the man raise his hand in a lazy wave while he and the toad disappeared. _'Wait, how'd he disappear with the toad? We needed to use clever timing and tricks to get in here for that entrance...'_ Naruto thought with a slight tick mark.

Several people in the audience once again gawked upon seeing Naruto – the demon brat – address one of the Sannin as 'sensei'. How the boy managed to receive training from one of the greatest Shinobi of their time was a mystery.

_'Hmm, Sasuke and Dosu aren't here. I'm sure Sasuke will show up eventually... but hell, the audience would never let the last Uchiha get disqualified.'_ Naruto thought to himself bitterly. He didn't have a problem with Sasuke, but the special treatment was a little irritating.

Naruto looked around the audience and gulped. Despite everything he couldn't help but feel a little dwarfed by the number of people watching him. He steeled his face and began to scan the audience until he noticed Karin and gave her a discrete wave, to which she returned adamantly. Sakura sweat-dropped at how similar the red-head was to the old Naruto, at least in terms of how excitable she was.

Meanwhile, in the Kage booth Hiruzen and the 'Kazekage' were discussing things like Hiruzen's age and whatnot, before the elderly Hokage walked up to the railing and decided to begin things.

"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for coming to the Leaf Village's Chūnin selection exams today. We will now begin the main matches with those who passed the preliminaries. Please enjoy the matches." The Hokage said. Genma decided to clear a few things up before they began.

"There are some things I need to tell you before the matches. Look at this." He said, pulling up a diagram of the scheduled matches. Apparently something had happened to Dosu since he wasn't there at all, instead having Haku fight the winner between Temari and Shikamaru before the winner of that match fought the winner between Shino and Kankuro.

"Say, Proctor-san..." Naruto said, earning Genma's attention. "...what'll happen if Sasuke doesn't arrive in time?" He finished, making Genma frown slightly.

"If he doesn't come here by the time his match starts... he will lose by default." The man replied, making Naruto frown behind his mask that everyone was questioning the need for.

"Listen up." Genma started. "The rules are the same as the preliminaries; there are none. The match will end by forfeit, death or my intervention. No argument is allowed. The first match is... Naruto Uzumaki and Neji Hyūga. The rest of you need to go back to the waiting room." He finished, as everyone began to make their way to the waiting room, though Haku walked up to Naruto.

"Good luck." She whispered, giving him a very quick and discrete kiss on the cheek that made him blush bright red as she walked off with a large smile. He coughed slightly as the red tinge disappeared and he placed his mask back on.

Up in the crowds plenty of discussion about the current match was occurring.

"So, do you think Nii-san can beat this Neji boy?" Karin said quizzically. Sakura took a thinking pose while Ino just scoffed.

"Yeah right, he could never beat Neji. That guy was rookie of the year... last year. He's going to win." She said confidently. Sakura didn't really have a retort since she'd been in a coma for so long but she still wanted to believe Naruto could succeed.

"Hmph, I bet Nii-san will kick his ass." Karin said, making Ino look at her with surprise at the confidence she displayed.

Many of the Chūnin and Jōnin in the stands were not even considering the notion that Naruto might actually win the match, since all of them remembered how he was not too long ago.

Surprisingly, Kiba was mentally on the same team as Karin. He'd been the one who actually fought Naruto, and he'd been pretty much slapped around like some sort of fool by the blond. He may not believe Naruto could win hands down, but he believed he could win if he tried hard enough.

Hinata obviously believed in Naruto, that was just who she was.

Naruto and Neji stood opposite to one another on the field. Naruto was giving Neji a rather even gaze through his mask, which was just about the only facial feature Neji could see. To Naruto's surprise, Neji actually seemed angry at him for one reason or another. He wasn't sure why, but he could guess.

"You want to say something?" Neji asked neutrally, having settled back into his usual passive expression.

"Not really, other than I look forward to this fight." Naruto said with a surprising level of cheeriness. Neji scowled at his lack of worry, not believing the Dobe could defeat a prodigy.

Neji took his **J****ū****ken** stance while Naruto got into the stance of his unnamed style.

"In this fight, I will show you the true reality of this world." Neji said, making Naruto just shrug at him with an even gaze.

"Talk is cheap... Let's dance!" Naruto shouted with glee, making several people in the audience gain looks of confusion while the Sandaime and other noteworthy figures somewhat paled at the familiar words of a certain Uchiha patriarch.

**-Naruto VS Neji-**

"Let the first match... begin!" Genma called out, as the crowd went wild. Naruto immediately jumped back, not wanting to drag on a useless stare-down. To test Neji's eyes, Naruto pulled out a Kunai and ran wind chakra through it before tossing it at Neji, all in the space of about a second. At first Neji seemed unfazed, but his eyes then widened as he dodged it, just barely missing a deadly hit.

"Your eyes are as strong as they say, Neji." Naruto said passively, as Neji scowled slightly. _'How could he use chakra flow exercises with such ease?'_ Neji thought angrily, making Naruto all the more amused.

"**Kage Bushin no Jutsu."** Naruto said quietly, as 7 clones appeared around him. The clones then all begun running around the young Hyūga into various points in a circular formation around him. Neji quickly took note of their spacing and location before crouching lower in preparation for attack. Naruto narrowed his gaze as the clones all charged in, while Naruto quickly summoned another clone to replace himself and watching carefully.

As the first clone arrived with a jump kick, Neji blocked it with the side of one of his arms before quickly moving said arm and grabbing its leg. He then swung that clone and threw it into another while throwing the palm of his other hand into the chest of a third clone, immediately dispelling it along with the first two.

One clone then tried attacking him from below, bursting out of the ground to hit him, but Neji immediately sprung into the air and twirled his body, allowing his to hook his foot on the back of another clones head and forcing it on top of the clone in the ground, dispelling both of them once more, leaving three clones. Naruto sighed at the performance, clearly Taijutsu wasn't the most recommendable option.

The last three clones attacked in tandem, one immediately receiving a palm strike to the heart and dispelling while the other two went in with Kunai from the sides. Neji allowed himself to drop to the ground as he spun to face upwards and tripped both clones before springing to his feet and launching another palm strike to each clone. He then re-entered his stance with a superior smirk while Naruto stood with his arms crossed, clearly unamused.

"Well that didn't go well..." Naruto mused aloud. Neji's smirk deepened while Naruto just rolled his eyes at his opponents clear air of superiority. He'd spent enough time around Sasuke to know the look, even if the boy _was_ less stuck up now.

Naruto ran at Neji, creating two more clones that each ran to a side of him. As Naruto was about to reach the boy they both let a handful of Shuriken fly at his head and feet to force Neji into a bad situation. Neji scowled and jumped backwards, making Naruto smile as he jumped into the air and came down with an axe kick right above the young Hyūga. Neji scowled and quickly grabbed Naruto's leg, but the blond wasn't having any of it. He quickly spun his body and kicked Neji in the chest with his other foot, sending him back a few feet, but still standing fine.

"That went much better." Naruto said with an almost infuriating level of cheeriness. Neji was fuming, the Dobe had gotten through his defence in only three separate attempts, he had to find a way to foresee the blond's movements, but it was easier said than done.

"Don't get cocky Uzumaki, you have no chance of winning this. Fate has declared me the victor." Neji said with confidence that was almost laughable to Naruto who had to withhold a sigh.

"If you say so. Say, you mind telling me who's giving you these prophecies? I think that kind of information would be useful." Naruto said sarcastically, making Neji fume and a few people in the audience drop their jaws that Naruto Uzumaki was mocking the Hyūga prodigy.

Ino was – to be quite frank – shocked that Naruto had even touched Neji. Sakura was happy he did so and Karin...

"YOU GO NII-SAN!" The red-head bellowed, making nearby people either scowl at her or raise their eyebrows in confusion of who she was referring to.

Haku was watching carefully with a smile on her face. After hearing the about the Hyūga's skills she was a little concerned Naruto wouldn't be able to fight him at close quarters at all, but it seems as though even she underestimated her blond teammate.

Many of the Jōnin and Chūnin present in the stadium were surprised a the usage of chakra flow and **Kage Bushin**, as both were not Genin level abilities. They were also perfect against a Hyūga due to the way they functioned. The shared chakra level made it impossible to tell which the original was.

Neji – having enough of being on the receiving end – decided to try an attack of his own. He charged forward at impressive speeds as Naruto entered his stance. He threw his arm forward with speed and precision towards Naruto's shoulder, making Naruto lean out of the way. He then spun around and tried to land a blow on Naruto's stomach, leading Naruto to twirl his form to escape the blow.

Naruto attempted to swat away Neji's arm during the next blow, but was easily intercepted by Neji's other arm due to the **Byakugan**. Neji's unblocked strike landed on Naruto's lower arm before he released Naruto's other and attempted to get another blow in. Naruto replied with a quick back-hand towards Neji's face, which the Hyūga easily caught, before realising it held little force. Naruto's knee then shot towards Neji's stomach as he defended with his other arm, leaving him defenceless against Naruto's remaining arm, which hit Neji in the chest as he jumped off the ground with his remaining leg and attempted to deliver a kick.

Neji had realised his mistake by now and decided to release the captured limbs of his opponent before jumping back, leaving Naruto to clutch his slightly numb arm. _'Hmm, my sensing tells me he missed the Tenketsu... good. I don't want any uninvited handicaps.'_ The blond thought to himself statistically.

"I think that's enough Taijutsu, right Neji?" Naruto said plainly, making Neji raise an eyebrow as Naruto created a single clone. The clone and original both began going through hand signs simultaneously as Neji ran forward to try and stop them, but to no avail.

"**Doton: Doro Hōshi!"** Naruto called out, as a river of mud rushed towards Neji, who stopped in place in surprise. The other clone then finished his own seals.

"**Katon: Endan!"** The clone called out, as he shot a flame bullet at the mud river. This caused it to ignite into a river of flames as Neji looked on in shock at the usage of two elemental Ninjutsu by a Genin. He quickly got into a different stance as the burning river approached.

The audience was stunned seeing Naruto use two elemental Ninjutsu in collaboration at such a young age, it was almost unheard of. There were obvious exceptions like Kakashi and Itachi who both became Genin at a young age and were prodigies among prodigies.

"**Hakkeshō Kaiten! (Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven!)"** The pale eyed boy shouted as he began to spin his body into a literal dome of chakra, causing all the burning mud to either go around him or be shot off in random directions. Naruto stood there with an inquisitive gaze as he fist bumped his clone and dispelled it.

"What an interesting technique... that is pure chakra, but the rotation gives it the resistance necessary to repel incoming attacks. Quite ingenious, expelling chakra from the Tenketsu like that." Naruto mused aloud, but quietly so nobody would here him but Neji. The boy ceased his rotation a few seconds later as the river finally stopped, giving Naruto a large victorious smirk. Naruto rolled his eyes in irritation as he addressed the boy.

"What? Are you going to give me that look every time you do something right?" Naruto said with irritation, ignoring the Hyūga family in the audience having an uproar upon seeing a branch member using the **Kaiten**. Neji ignored the jab and just looked at Naruto evenly.

"I heard your goal was to become Hokage correct?" Neji stated while staring at Naruto who simply looked on passively.

"It is. Is there a reason this is relevant right now?" Naruto replied, making his irritation directed at the topic clear as day. Naruto grit his teeth in fury when Neji actually started laughing at him. He was used to having his dream put down, but he refused to stand for this.

"You're a fool Uzumaki..." He said, after getting himself in control. "...you were born a failure. These eyes see everything you know, and your empty dream isn't excluded. All people are born with a destiny, as the Dobe your destiny was failure. I was born as a winner." Neji said, making Naruto snort in derision.

"Liar." Naruto said, getting Neji's attention. "...if you were born a winner, why are you in the branch family?" Naruto said. He knew it was low and uncalled for, but this was the best way to wake the stubborn boy up. Neji literally began to tremble with anger, as Hiashi in the stands lowered his head.

"Don't speak about things you don't understand!" Neji shouted at him, making Naruto take off his mask and give him a hard stare.

"I understand perfectly. You – Neji Hyūga – were born into the branch family of the Hyūga clan, who are essentially the lower class of the clan. The branch family are limited in the techniques of the clan and they are destined to be guardians of the main house." Naruto said, while Neji continued to stare at him, as though wishing looks could kill someone.

"You were born a servant with limited potential, and yet mere moments ago you used the **Kaiten**, a main house technique. YOU are defying YOUR fate, so don't go preaching to me that mine is set in stone you hypocrite." Naruto said, as he was all but shouting by the end. Neji actually took a moment to contemplate his words until his gaze hardened once more.

"No! Fate cannot be defied, I will be a branch member forever..." He said, untying his headband. "...this seal will never leave me, I will always be a mere servant! This seal lets the main house do what they want with us, we have no freedom." Neji continued, his seal being displayed to the world as Naruto frowned. He was not aware of the seal, it wasn't documented anywhere. It was clear the Hyūga clan were either ashamed of the seal or didn't want people to know about it.

"Then how about you stop complaining about it and do something?" Naruto said as if it was clear as day. "...the main house may control the branch, but they could not afford to lose every member. If you stand up for yourselves you could change your... fate." He continued, as Neji's resolve began to wane, until he shook his adamantly and charged forward at Naruto who scowled at the unexpected attack.

"You know nothing!" He said, as he threw a palm strike at Naruto's arm. "...my fate cannot be changed..." He continued, spinning around and striking Naruto in the chest. "...you will never be more than a failure..." He said, as Naruto attempted to strike back. Neji grabbed his wrist and struck him in the lower stomach. "...you will never be Hokage!" He finished as he did a two hand strike to Naruto's stomach. Naruto coughed up blood as he was thrown backwards.

Neji then let out a small growl of annoyance and looked up at Hiashi before closing his eyes and standing still. Naruto also lay still, seemingly unconscious from the barrage of blows he received.

_'Naruto-kun, don't you dare lose like that. I know you can do it, come on!'_ Haku mentally screamed, trying to do her best not to seem overly concerned for a potential competitor, but feeling her fortitude waning quickly.

"Nii-san!" Karin shouted, as Sakura lowered her head while Ino sighed sadly. "...you better not lose you idiot!" She continued, feeling herself tear up slightly.

"I guess he really didn't have it in him." Kotetsu said, making Izumo nod while Hinata and Kiba just looked on worriedly.

Naruto lay still for a few more moments, and just as Genma was going to call the match his eyes sprung open as he scrambled to his feet. He cracked his neck as he evened out his stance and placed his mask back on before giving Neji a determined glare.

Haku was relieved to see Naruto on his feet and alright. The other competitors in the waiting room had already begun to notice that Haku seemed to be worried more than she should be for Naruto's sake. Shikamaru – being the lazy genius he is – had already guessed the reason for that. Naruto was one lucky guy.

Karin let out a sigh of relief that Naruto wasn't hurt, as Sakura smiled and Ino raise here eyebrows in surprise.

The audience couldn't believe how entertaining this fight was. They thought this would essentially be a warm up for Neji, since he was facing Naruto... but instead they were actually fighting quite evenly, despite everything they thought they knew about the blond Uzumaki.

"How can you still function properly?" Neji said, as Naruto snorted.

"If you didn't get so pissed off you may have noticed you didn't hit almost any of my Tenketsu." Naruto said evenly, as Neji examined his handiwork and found no fault with the blond's deduction. Naruto just jumped away and gave Neji a hard look as he began going through hand signs again.

"**Doton: Doryūsō."** Naruto whispered, as earth spikes began to flew out of the ground to impale Neji. The pale-eyed boy began to jump away to avoid the spikes but Naruto wasn't having any of it. He continued to create more and more spikes as Neji continued to evade them. Suddenly, Naruto smirked and released the jutsu.

Neji was about to sigh gratefully due to the break in the assault when two hands broke through the ground and grabbed his legs. He tried to struggle free, but then another Naruto emerged from the ground behind him and gave him quick jump kick to the head as the clone below him released his legs, making him fly across the arena.

"When did you... hide those clones?" Neji growled out, as he rose from the ground. Naruto just smiled behind his mask.

"Right at the beginning when you were fighting the first eight clones I created..." Naruto said, as Neji looked on in slight awe at the tactical foresight Naruto had displayed. "...I did my research and I was confident the **Byakugan** couldn't see underground, so there we have our answer." Naruto said, as the audience began to grow loud with the revelation. The Hyūga clan members in the audience were furious the weaknesses of the **Byakugan** were being revealed publicly.

"You... shouldn't be able to... fight this hard..." Neji said, earning another hard stare from Naruto. "...you were the Dobe; the loser! I am a prodigy! You can't defy fate!" He shouted in what sounded like desperation; his ideals being shattered around him. Naruto gave him a slightly sad stare as he spoke.

"Let me explain something to you Neji. I belong to the Uzumaki clan; a clan that rivals the Senju or Uchiha..." Naruto started, earning the attention of... just about everyone. "...my clan was wiped out a long time ago and as far as I know there are only two surviving members. That's what I am, the survivor; the victor. If you believe in fate think of it this way, I have defied the fate of my clan, that fate was its extinction. I am a living example that fate isn't binding, that things can change." Naruto said, making Neji just look down at the ground as he tried to clamour for a retort.

Neji decided not to indulge the blond by acknowledging his statement and got back into his stance. Naruto let out a small 'Tsk' in irritation that Neji was still denying what was readily apparent. _'Looks like I'll just have to beat it into him...'_ Naruto thought with a small smile.

"**Kage Bushin no Jutsu."** Naruto said, as dozens of clones appeared all around Naruto. Many of those in the audience were shocked by the pure quantity he could create. Even Jōnin level Shinobi could not produce that many without repercussions. Naruto was just standing there unfazed, as if he'd just used the **Bushin no Jutsu** to create a single clone.

"You all know what to do." Naruto said in a bored tone. A large portion of the clones shot towards Neji while others stayed back for reasons that weren't readily apparent. Neji began to start wading through the clones, destroying them as he went. Even he had to acknowledge he was being pushed by the sheer quantity of clones, along with Naruto's deceitful Taijutsu style.

"**Kaiten!"** He shouted, as he felt the clones start to overwhelm him. The original just watched passively to see any signs of weakness with the **Kaiten**, so far he couldn't find one. Neji then stopped rotating and began to go back to slaying the clones left and right. He noticed, however than occasionally he'd have to stop to block a Kunai or Shuriken.

"What are you trying to do Uzumaki? You won't defeat me with one Shuriken every now and then!" Neji shouted at Naruto, who just remained impassive, much to Neji's ire. He continued destroying clones and intercepting the occasional ninja tool. That was – however – until he felt something sharp pierce his back. Naruto's eyes then became amused as he shifted his stance.

"Found it." Naruto said cryptically, as Tenten's eyes widened in shock that a ninja tool could hit Neji. The Hyūga in the audience were equally concerned with this turn of events as Naruto stood there as though he'd just gotten an average gift for his birthday; mildly pleased. Haku smirked at the blond's ingenuity while everyone else was unsure what the big deal was.

"How... did you... hit me?!" Neji all but shouted at him as he struggled to pull a Kunai out of his back. Naruto narrowed his eyes and gave a slightly apologetic look to the pale-eyed boy; the wound did look painful.

"It's rather simple really... I used the clones to fight you up close so you'd not realise I was picking your oh so proclaimed 360 degree vision apart with the clones I left at a distance..." Naruto said, as Neji began to realise what he was saying. "...during my research, I saw mentions of mysterious cases of Hyūga clan members being killed without seeing an attack coming, something that is said to be impossible. I came to the hypothetical conclusion – which I have now proved – that the **Byakugan** has a blind spot." Naruto said, as though answering a question in class.

The Hyūga clan in the audience were fuming. This damn brat had just told the world that the **Byakugan** was not as perfect as they made it out to be. Now everyone would be trying to find that damned weak spot. Hiashi was simply shocked at how easily Naruto was able to deduce and prove this weakness in the middle of a fight.

The stadium fell into silence. Everyone who had arrived today – bar those who knew Naruto personally – were sure without a shred of doubt that Neji was going to win this fight with ease. Then Naruto Uzumaki, the village pariah managed to not only put up a damn good fight but also deduce one of the least known secrets in the Shinobi world. The blind spot of the Hyūga clan's **Byakugan** was known by under 1,000 people in the world, until now... and the majority of those people were either members of the clan or those who fought them and won.

"I-impossible!" Neji retorted, to which Naruto let out an amused laugh. He'd literally just proven that it was possible, using Neji himself as his example. Some people could be so foolish when presented with something they didn't want to hear.

"Oh, then you just so happened to miss that Kunai did you?" Naruto said sarcastically, as Neji just stood there dumbstruck. He didn't even know this himself, he'd never encountered any sort of blind spot before.

Neji was a smart person, and everyone knew it. He knew the wound on his back would give Naruto the advantage from here out, because the placement of the wound meant he would always be in pain whenever he moved his torso. It wasn't looking good for the almighty Hyūga prodigy.

Naruto stood motionless as he observed his opponent. He knew just from the boy's body language that the wound was already affecting him; making his movements a little more robotic and stressed. He could also decipher the look of denial and fear in his eyes, as though he couldn't believe and was actually afraid of being beaten by Naruto. It seemed nothing the blond did would break his 'fate' philosophy until he'd fully lost.

"Why do you persist Neji?" Naruto said almost solemnly, making the pale-eyed boy pause and give him an attentive glare. "...I've given you evidence, examples... I've given you clear indication that fate can be rejected... why do you cling to it like an instruction from Kami?" He asked, making Neji look down with sadness and anger displayed in his eyes.

"Because the main house killed my father." He answered. Naruto was taken aback by the proclamation but quickly reined himself in.

"What do you mean? Clan or not, they couldn't get away with killing a Shinobi of this village." Naruto stated, not wanting to believe what Neji was saying.

"Nine years ago Kumogakure sent an envoy along with their head ninja to sign a peace treaty with Konoha. At this time Hinata – the heir of the main branch – had just turned three. One night, Hinata was kidnapped and almost taken from the village before Hiashi-sama killed the kidnapper..." Neji said, as the Hyūga members of the audience began to sweat.

"...that kidnapper was the head ninja of Kumogakure..." Neji stated, making several of the audience gawk. "...in return, Kumo demanded the body of Hiashi-sama as a reparation. My father – who was the twin brother of Hiashi-sama... was killed as a replacement, since he had the curse mark of the Hyūga clan and could not be used to obtain the **Byakugan**." Neji finished, making Naruto look at him evenly.

"Can you prove that?" Naruto said, catching Neji off guard.

"What?" He asked, surprised by the question.

"I said... can you prove that? If you have no evidence whatsoever that your father was killed by the clan to replace Hiashi then this could all be an illusion you've dreamt up." Naruto said neutrally. Neji looked down and struggled to find the words to retort, he'd assumed everything. The clan was just the source of his blame, nothing more.

"..." Neji couldn't find an answer, which made Naruto sigh in exasperation. To be fair, in a way this conversation was actually helping Naruto. Neji's wound wasn't getting any better and this pause was giving Naruto time to recuperate a little.

"I thought so..." Naruto said evenly as Neji shook his head in defeat. "...now then, can we finish this dance? The music can't go forever you know." Naruto said, referring to how long the audience was willing to put up with this chat in the middle of a fight. Not that anybody got that, and just looked at him funny.

"I guess we should finish this..." Neji said, having retrieved his voice. "...let's end this... Naruto." He continued. Naruto smiled behind his mask at the small but noticeable thing he did to show his gratitude for waking him up from his illusion; simply saying his name.

"You better watch your feet Neji..." Naruto started, earning Neji's attention and confusion. "...don't want to get lost in the song and slip..." He continued, again giving everyone a rather confusing dance reference. The Sandaime was sighing in irritation and the blond's choice of words while the 'Kazekage' found it all rather amusing.

"You have some very interesting Genin Hokage-dono." The 'Kazekage' said to Hiruzen, who smiled widely at the words. Truly if one word described Naruto, it was interesting. The 'Kazekage' was still a little annoyed that the blond wouldn't be his, but he'd work on that another time.

"Indeed I do Kazekage-dono..." The elderly Sarutobi spoke, making the Kazekage let out a small snort of laughter. "...I am looking forward to seeing how your children perform in this exam, they must be very skilled to have all made it this far." He continued, not realising he was giving the 'Kazekage' a topic he couldn't really lie about.

"Y-yes well... you'll see just how skilled they are soon my friend." The man replied, inwardly patting himself on the back for the quick and effective way of dealing with that little issue. Hiruzen just smiled at the man, though he was beginning to have his suspicions.

"I hope I will... it would be a shame if they were to lose to quickly." The Hokage said, watching the reaction of his opponent. To his annoyance, the man didn't even flinch at the mention of his children being assumed weak. That was strike 2.

In the arena, both fighters were preparing to finish. To show respect to his opponent, Naruto removed his mask and strapped it to his waist. Several girls in the audience blushed for reasons that Naruto was obviously oblivious to. Neji smirked at him and they both charged forward.

As they arrived near each other, almost everyone in the audience began to think Naruto had lost his mind. He was blatantly attempting to fight a Hyūga at close range, something that was very inadvisable. At least last time he'd had some clones to assist him.

Neji began to throw palm strikes at Naruto, who avoided most of them. Neji then decided it was more advisable to use smaller but quicker finger blows to deal with Naruto's tricky Taijutsu style. He started throwing his fingers around, prodding at Naruto's weak spots. Naruto – through the use of clones – had ensured he didn't have any obvious weak spots though, as through all the different perspectives of the fight he was able to see where he was failing to defend and adjust accordingly. It was an amazingly simple but equally brilliant solution.

The fight actually went in a slight stalemate, neither of them really getting more than a glancing blow. Neji then jumped back suddenly and assumed a low stance as the Hyūga audience gasped for the thousandth time today.

"It's time for this to end... you are within the field of my divination." Neji stated, making Naruto gulp as he remembered what came after those words from Haku's fight with Hinata. He prayed his solution to this technique actually worked.

Haku's eyes widened after hearing those words. That attack from Hinata had been effective enough to damage her ice dome, which was about as strong or maybe a little weaker than her ice mirrors. It was capable of very high levels of damage to both the Tenketsu and the body. She prayed that Naruto had a plan to combat this.

"What's he talking about... 'field of divination'? What's that mean?" Ino asked in a confused manner, earning a shrug from Sakura who knew less than anyone else here about Neji. Karin was a very skilled sensor, so she was able to recognise Naruto's chakra fluctuation as Neji finished his sentence and hoped her brother had a plan. If he didn't... the chakra output from Neji was not good for him.

"**Hakke Rokujūyon Shō! (Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms!)"** Neji called out as he envisioned a large eight trigrams symbol along the ground_. _He then shot into action towards Naruto, as he noted the unusual field of chakra surrounding the blond, along with a strange reflective illusion.

"Two Palms!" He started, feeling strange resistance as he struck.

"Four Palms!" He continued, as his hands began to hurt and Naruto growled slightly.

"Eight Palms" He said, feeling the pain continue.

"Sixteen Palms" He continued, as his hands began to receive various cuts.

"Thirty-Two Palms!" He said again, feeling his hands in serious pain.

"**Hakke Rokujūyon Shō!" **The pale-eyed boy finished, as he slammed his hands into Naruto for the last time. As Naruto staggered back, Neji noticed that his hands were bruised and bleeding. He also noticed the fact that Naruto was still standing.

"Congratulations Neji... you made me use my **Shōton**." Naruto said, as – to Neji's horror – an almost invisible layer of crystal began to crack and fall away from all over the blond's body, the thing that had previously formed a very discrete but effective armour.

"But.. but how did you get that active so quick?" Neji said, his hands in serious discomfort since he'd been essentially slamming them against a wall of crystal.

"That's the fun part. My **Kesshō no Yoroi (Crystal Armour)** is a chakra flow technique, so it requires no obvious movement to activate." Naruto said with a smile, making Neji gawk. However, Naruto then coughed up a large amount of blood and sank to a knee.

"I guess... it wasn't strong enough... to completely negate that attack." He coughed out. Neji would've taken the time to finish the fight, if his hands hadn't been badly injured when he'd attacked Naruto's armour. Naruto staggered to a stand as Neji began to to back away slightly, inwardly realising this fight was probably lost.

"I guess our battle ends here..." Neji said with erratic breathing, having used far more chakra during this fight than he'd originally intended. Naruto nodded lightly, trying not to strain his body too much.

"Let's finish with a show." Naruto said in reply, earning a nod from his opponent while the audience were on the end of their seats. They both shot forward and threw their respective right arms forward, Naruto in a fist and Neji in a forced palm. Naruto allowed himself to lose his footing to evade Neji's attack while his fist encroached upon the boy's face. Neji noticed the chakra around the boy's hand and noted this was going to hurt...

And it was going to hurt a lot.

Naruto's fist slammed into the face of his opponent, the crystal armour covering it drastically increasing its power. Neji felt as though he'd literally broken his skull as he flew away from the blond quickly; skidding across the ground. Naruto landed on the floor with a slight thud as he took a deep breath and noticed Neji's unmoving form. He lay there for a few seconds before rising to his feet and shaking his head a little before running a hand through his hair, walking towards his downed opponent.

"Looks like you won after all... impressive, for a failure." Neji said jokingly as Naruto gave him a small smile.

"I guess so..." He replied. "...say, what's that seal of yours called?" Naruto asked, curious about the seals name.

"The caged bird seal." Neji replied somewhat downtrodden as Naruto nodded with a smile on his face.

"How appropriate..." Naruto started, making Neji look at him with an interested gaze. "...if it tries hard enough, even a caged bird can be free." He finished, gazing up at the sky with a smile as Neji just lay still. Genma looked over the two of them for a few seconds before he came to a conclusion.

"Winner, Naruto Uzumaki." Genma said, as the crowd erupted into cheers. Naruto was certainly not expecting cheers from almost the entire crowd, it was such an alien feeling to him... widespread acceptance; praise. He smiled deeply as he gave a thankful gaze up at the crowd and waved a little as he walked over to the waiting room.

He crossed eyes with Karin and gave her a wave with closed eyes and a genuine smile, making her jump up and wave back at him, much to the irritation of those behind her. Sakura and Ino had varying opinions. Sakura was very pleased that Naruto was able to win while Ino was shocked he'd actually won... he'd even admitted to have been holding back his **Kekkei Genkai**.

"Told you he'd win didn't I!" Karin said loudly, making Sakura chuckle while Ino just crossed her arms with a 'hmph. Kotetsu and Izumo were certainly not expecting Naruto to do anywhere near as well as he'd done.

"To think he'd be able to beat the Hyūga kid... I didn't think the fox boy could fight like that." Kotetsu said, making Izumo nod as they both clapped. Shikamaru was rather disappointed that Naruto won... but not for the reason you'd expect.

"He won, are you serious? I thought he was in the 'not-so-cool' group with me." He said, making Shino turn to him with a curious gaze.

"Not so cool group?" He replied, as Shikamaru continued.

"He's getting all those cheers, which means he's a part of the cool group... actually I probably can't beat him..." He said, before letting out a sigh. "...I'm in deep trouble. Now I feel down." He continued, lamenting the loss of a fellow 'not-so-cool' group member. Haku let out a small laugh drawing their attention.

"I think you underestimate Naruto-kun, Shikamaru..." Haku started, as she looked down at him and smiled. "...he's probably stronger than me or Sasuke." She continued, making Shikamaru face-palm.

"How troublesome." He said quietly, earning a few groans from around him in various places. He looked around in confusion before shrugging his shoulders and dropping it. It was far too troublesome to see what was wrong.

Asuma and Kurenai were shocked that Naruto was able to beat the previous year's Rookie of the Year without even using his curse mark or the Kyūbi's chakra. It made them wonder just how strong he would become... they could certainly see him being promoted, that was for sure.

"I can't believe that idiot that barely graduated was able to do _this._" Kurenai muttered out, making Asuma nod in agreement.

"I think the entire stadium is surprised if I'm honest." He said absently. Meanwhile, Hiashi went off to speak with Neji about the truth of his father's death; to give him closure. Naruto arrived in the waiting room to see everyone either looking at him with surprise, shock or – in Haku's case – happiness. He simply smirked and walked over to the girl who was standing with Shikamaru and Shino.

"You're such a troublesome guy Naruto... geez..." Shikamaru said, earning a slight glare from Haku who had heard quite enough of the word troublesome for one day. Naruto chuckled as he caught her expression... she'd just have to get used to it. "...then again, why do I expect anything else anymore?" He finished rhetorically. Naruto just smiled with his eyes shut at the lazy Nara, who just rolled his eyes at the blond's admittance to his own troublesome nature.

"It was an impressive match Naruto-san. Why you ask? It is because you defeated both a Rookie of the Year and a prodigy." Shino said with his strange manner of speech. Naruto just nodded a little awkwardly at the boy. He'd never really had to deal with Shino much and the guy was a bit too... odd... for his tastes.

"Thanks Shino, Neji was a tough opponent, that's for sure." Naruto replied, getting a nod from the stoic and all but emotionless Aburame. Haku seemed to be shifting uncomfortably in her spot, for reasons Naruto couldn't quite deduce. _'I want to hug him, but I shouldn't... this is so difficult!'_ Haku thought to herself with annoyance. She not stopped thinking about him since their kiss, the mind blowing experience it was constantly popping up in her mind. It was his fault she was like this, why did he have to be so damned perfect?

"Something the matter Haku?"

Those words instantly cut her out of her slightly inappropriate thoughts, which had begun to shift away from hugging. She shook her head quickly and gave a forced smile to the blond, thanking Kami she hadn't been conscious enough to blush in embarrassment. Naruto just looked at her quizzically as she calmed herself.

"No, I'm fine..." She said convincingly, making Naruto shrug off his doubts. "...that was a great match by the way, not just the fighting either. I'm glad you were able to get through to him." She continued, making him smile and look away.

"Yeah, at the end of the day he was just a guy who had a bad hand at birth and lost his father. I can't really fault him for that." Naruto said. He'd really wanted to tell Neji to shut the hell up and tell him how everything that Neji had, he had worse... but that wouldn't solve anything and would make Naruto sound like a petulant child.

"Yeah, I know what you mean..." Haku replied somewhat sadly. That seemed like a bit of a theme around here. Naruto, Neji and herself... they all lost their families and were born with something that could be seen as a curse, at least where they were born. Naruto had his demon, Neji had his caged bird seal and she was born with a bloodline during the purges. All in all, they didn't have the best hand... but that was finally turning around for all of them.

Shikamaru had managed to deduce that Haku obviously felt something for Naruto due to the subtle ways she reacted to certain things during his match. The way the two interacted seemed to mirror this, so when he'd gotten the chance he'd discretely dragged Shino away to give them a little privacy. Noticing this Naruto decided to bring something up.

"He remind you of anyone?" Naruto said quietly and softly. The girl just smiled with a little melancholy.

"Yes... us..." She said. Naruto wasn't actually referring to himself, he wasn't one to wallow in his past since he couldn't really do anything about it. "...both of us were born either with a curse or were given one... both of us lost our parents at some point." She continued, as Naruto did a subtle motion to place his arm around her shoulder.

"Yeah..." He said quietly, trying not to worsen the already poor mood. He really shouldn't have brought this up, it killed the sense of accomplishment he felt from winning his match and had ruined his... sort of girlfriend's mood as well. He saw Haku brighten almost instantly from the small act of comfort he gave her, and was amazed he had such an effect on her.

"At least we have... each other now." Haku replied somewhat meekly. Naruto smiled genuinely at the proclamation and rubbed her shoulder before looking right at her. She returned the smile and they both just waited for whatever came next.

They couldn't help but notice the lack of one Sasuke Uchiha, regardless of the fact that his match was next. Naruto scowled slightly as he looked over at Gaara, who seemed rather unfazed by the lack of his opponent. His ruthlessness that was displayed in the hospital could easily have been shifted onto Sasuke.

"_No, Sasuke wouldn't allow himself to die that quietly... he'd probably shout 'You can't kill me! I'm an Uchiha; an elite!' and get everyone's attention."_ Naruto thought to himself with a small smirk on his face upon remembering his teammate's less than desirable attitude and outlook that he used to possess.

Naruto then noticed a man with scars decorating one side of his face talking to Genma, the current proctor. Naruto furrowed his brows as he recognised that the man was near the Sandaime prior to this, so this spelt trouble.

"Ladies and gentlemen... one of the examinees for the next match has not arrived, so the match will be delayed. We will now begin the succeeding match." Genma called out, to try and get everyone to hear him after the scarred man left him alone in the arena.

Naruto didn't know whether to adorn himself with a frown or a smile; to be pleased or annoyed. The fact that Sasuke wouldn't be disqualified and therefore would still have a chance to participate was nice, but Naruto knew the reason was likely the fact that he was an Uchiha. It was a very annoying thing to have to deal with, your friend getting special treatment. Haku noticing his expression just sighed.

"I know it isn't exactly fair, but there's nothing we can do about it." She said quietly, making Naruto pout cutely. This made Haku let out a small 'aww' that Naruto immediately caught and blushed at before looking at the girl, with wide embarrassed eyes. She laughed at his expression making him fume slightly.

Genma – after giving a few seconds for the new schedule to sink in amongst the audience – coughed into his hand before speaking once more.

"The next match is... Kankuro and Shino Aburame. Come down." He ordered, as Kankuro began to sweat nervously with a worried expression. He thought about their 'plan' and decided the match wasn't worth revealing his tricks for.

"Proctor! I forfeit!" He shouted, earning looks of bafflement, confusion and shock from all the other competitors. There was absolutely no reason coming if he was going to forfeit the match he had an entire month to prepare for... something wasn't adding up.

"What?" Genma said in evident annoyance. Kankuro didn't flinch at the tone at all and spoke up again.

"I forfeit! Move onto the next match." He said, getting a death glare from the usually stoic Aburame. Naruto shivered seeing the way Shino was staring at the boy... he was not happy at all. Not one bit.

"Kankuro has given up. Shino Aburame wins by forfeit." Genma said tiredly, earning more outrage from the audience. They were already on the fourth match in and two of them hadn't even happened!

Temari scowled and grabbed her fan, opening it and twirling it around creating a small wind storm in the waiting area. Naruto stood unfazed and glared at her slightly as the over-the-top action was unnecessary along with annoying. At least his entrance had been cool.

She lowered herself to the arena atop her fan; slowly gliding down to the arena.

"We're going to start the next match. Hey, you, other one... get down here!" He called out. Shikamaru looked a little startled at the call-out and decided to speak up.

"Hey now, why are you guys getting excited? Actually, why do I have to be the one who gets his match-ups changed so frequently?" He said, not really getting the attention of anyone.

"Shikamaru Nara, it's you." Genma said, trying to speed up this tiresome process.

_'I should just copy the other guy and give up...'_ Shikamaru thought to himself as he leaned a little far over the railing. Haku immediately caught a devilish gleam in Naruto's eye and slightly sighed... this was going to be bad.

"Come on Shikamaru, go dance with the nice girl!" Naruto said as he dashed over and kicked him over the railing. He landed on the ground below with a crash, kicking up a dust cloud. It cleared to reveal a very unamused Shikamaru Nara laying on his back.

_'Damn Blonds...'_ He thought to himself. Then – to just about everyone's irritation and annoyance – he just continued to lay there... for a long while. The crowd actually started to throw things at him to ensure he moved, as Naruto began to feel the need to force him to do something. Haku noticed this and gave him a lopsided smile, as though she thought he was being ridiculous.

"I swear, if he gets any lazier he may just stop breathing." Naruto sighed out, making Haku giggle at him.

"That sounds like him." She said with mirth.

Temari – having enough of having her time wasted – charged towards the boy and gave a downwards slam of her war fan. After a rather ridiculous eruption of smoke Shikamaru could be seen standing atop two Kunai on in a nearby wall. Temari blasted a wind attack at him – once again clearing to reveal Shikamaru no longer there.

Up in the stands, Chōji decided to join the girls to watch the match. Karin tried to act casual, but she was rather put off by his constant eating. It was... rather disgusting. She heard from Sakura that Naruto had been much the same in the past while eating Ramen... she was glad he'd stopped that recently.

While Ino actually believed Shikamaru had jumped into the stadium and was teeming with determination for once, he was actually the opposite. He was hidden behind a tree thinking about how lovely the clouds were.

Temari then fired a strong **Fūton **attack towards Shikamaru, scarring the trees and kicking up another disproportional dust storm. Out of the storm came a shadow, which Temari promptly evaded. She made a note of the length of the shadow by cutting a line in the ground with her fan while the dust cleared to reveal a crouched Shikamaru controlling the shadow.

Temari had also noted the basic concept behind the shadow imitation technique; that Shikamaru had a peak of how far and wide the shadow could stretch and thicken. Naruto was taking note of the way the two were acting outside of simple combat and could safely see this battle would be a rather tactical one, not unlike his own. He knew Shikamaru was able to defeat him in a game of tactics, but he was closer to him in that regard than people – even himself – probably realised.

To the surprise of everyone but those who knew Shikamaru's antics well – so basically, just his team – the boy placed his hand in a strange seal, each of his fingers and thumbs touching at the tips. Asuma quickly smirked, realising that the boy was focusing his mind to come up with a solution to his issue.

As Shikamaru stopped his pose and opened his eyes, Temari blasted another wind attack towards him, forcing him to take cover. He also removed his jacket and took out a Kunai. Temari continued to assault his position with **Fūton** ninjutsu through her fan. Naruto took note of her use of the fan as a medium for ninjutsu and decided to try it with various weapons himself.

As she continued to attack numerous Kunai shot out of the treeline and forced her to evade or block them. This was followed by yet another shadow. To her surprise it exceeded the line she dug, making her realise he used the sun's new position to extend it further. Naruto looked up and smiled deeply from what he saw... Shikamaru was a true genius.

Kankuro shouted out for Temari to move, as she looked up to the sky to see something approaching her. A shadow then formed at the end of Shikamaru's own shadow, allowing his range to extend while the girl retreated. Shikamaru's jacket – attached to a kunai like a parachute – was in the air above them like a makeshift shadow producer.

Temari came to a stop and placed her fan in the ground, fully extended to break line of sight. As she prepared to use a standard clone to confuse Shikamaru to allow her to attack, she suddenly found herself trapped. Shikamaru's shadow had extended through one of the holes in the ground from Naruto and Neji's duel straight to her.

Shikamaru walked both of them out into the centre of the arena after a lengthy discussion about what exactly had occurred. Just as he was seemingly about to win, he forfeit the match claiming he was out of chakra. This made Naruto literally slam his head against the metal bar in disbelief that Shikamaru would forfeit a clear victory. Everyone else had similar reactions. Temari won the match and that was that.

"God damn him..." Naruto said in exasperation. "...to give up in such a good position... only he's capable of such madness." He continued as he closed his eyes, running a hand through his hair in annoyance. Haku couldn't help but agree, it seemed foolish.

"Now then..." Genma spoke loudly. "...since Dosu Kinuta can not participate for certain reasons, Haku Yuki automatically wins the match." Genma finished, making Haku sigh and Naruto to twitch slightly. The audience couldn't be pleased with one no-show, one forfeit, one anti-climatic match and a mysterious missing candidate.

"Lastly, Gaara and Sasuke Uchiha." Genma said, inwardly cursing that Sasuke still wasn't here. Gaara did a quick **Suna Shunshin (Sand Body Flicker)** to get down into the arena while the audience began to rage about the lack of one Sasuke Uchiha. Then a large gust of wind and tornado of leaves appeared in the middle of the arena to reveal Kakashi Hatake and Sasuke Uchiha back-to-back.

Naruto smirked at his teammate, it was about damn time.

**-****End-**

**So there we go. Naruto VS Neji. Now, that definitely portrayed the new Naruto if I've ever failed to do so in the past. His tactical mindset, improved intelligence and foresight allowed him to really give Neji a run for his money.**

**That fight was 5319 words. That's my longest fight scene so far, but not nearly as long as some I've seen. I think that's the best I can do to be quite honest, I was surprised I dragged it out that long.**

**So, I summed up the Temari vs Shikamaru fight because it was unnecessary to write the whole thing. I also inadvertently made the condition that was essential for Shikamaru's almost victory – the holes created by Naruto – occur during Naruto's revamped fight.**

**Yep, I made Dosu die so Haku wouldn't have a match. I would've preferred to have her fight, but Dosu wouldn't have lasted long anyway. **

**Anyway... Review, Favourite and/or Follow. **

**LiamMorg. Out.**

**Ja Ne!**


	15. The Fox and the Sandman

**I don't own Naruto... if I did this story would take over 10 years to finish. **

**Sasuke VS Gaara is largely the same because Sasuke beat Gaara like a training dummy in canon anyway.**

**Quote of the chapter/day: "There is no such thing as a good death, but there are ways to make it far better than it could be."**

**Chapter 15: The Fox and the Sandman**

**-Last Chapter-**

"_Lastly, Gaara and Sasuke Uchiha." Genma said, inwardly cursing that Sasuke still wasn't here. Gaara did a quick **Suna Shunshin (Sand Body Flicker)** to get down into the arena while the audience began to rage about the lack of one Sasuke Uchiha. Then a large gust of wind and tornado of leaves appeared in the middle of the arena to reveal Kakashi Hatake and Sasuke Uchiha back-to-back._

_Naruto smirked at his teammate, it was about damn time._

**-Start-**

Sasuke looked around at the arena and those in the stands. The crowd seemed annoyed, that was the most plain word to explain what he could see. They were all there with frowns and scowls adorning their face, or some looks of boredom. He then looked up at the competitors booth and saw that more than just Naruto looked dirty, Temari and Shikamaru also looked a little weathered while there was no sight of Neji. Sasuke immediately gained a large scowl on his face and turned to Kakashi.

"Kakashi... you made me late didn't you?" The young Uchiha said dangerously as Kakashi started to sweat. He turned towards Genma with a nervous laugh as he prayed to Kami that the boy wasn't disqualified, he'd never hear the end of it. Sasuke was a vengeful person and Kakashi didn't want to become the target of those tendencies.

"Sorry we're late." Kakashi said with an apologetic eye-smile. Genma just smirked at the man before closing his eyes, then proceeding to re-open them and look at Sasuke.

"Name?" Genma said professionally, making Sasuke smile slightly at the man.

"Sasuke Uchiha." Sasuke replied. Naruto leaned near the railing and looked closely at Sasuke. He noticed his attire was different, now an entirely black variant of his usual outfit with white arm bands, with bandages not unlike Lee's going down his left arm and on the bottom of both legs.

"If he's trying to make an entrance, I think I have him beat." Naruto said, somewhat smugly as Haku chuckled lightly at his reaction. She could've sworn Sasuke's hair wasn't so long before the finals though, it was weird.

"If it helps your ego, I think your entrance was great Naruto-kun." Haku said with a playful smirk. Naruto let out a satisfied snort of a breath as he closed his eyes and waited. Down in the arena Kakashi was getting back on topic.

"It's hard to ask this after we entered the arena with such a flashy performance, but did Sasuke get disqualified?" Kakashi asked worriedly as Sasuke shot him a small glare. He could already guess his Uchiha lineage spared him from disqualification, but he didn't like to have his name define him anymore.

"His match was put on hold... he arrived just in time, so he isn't disqualified." Genma replied with a knowing smirk. Kakashi let out a breath he'd been holding in relief. Sasuke just removed the glare from Kakashi and faced his opponent with a frown. Up in the stands, everyone was watching earnestly.

"Sasuke-kun's here!" Sakura exclaimed as quietly as she could. Ino, Chōji and even Lee were relieved to see the boy turn up, while a certain red-head inspected him with an interested stare.

_'So, that's Sasuke Uchiha... he's handsome, I'll give him that. Nii-san's probably more handsome though, not that I see him that way.' _Karin thought to herself with a grin, along with a small pink tinge that had appeared across her face.

Back in the competitors booth Shikamaru waltzed over to Naruto and gave him a disapproving stare. Naruto just laughed at the boy's expense... it was totally worth kicking him down into the arena. Haku rolled her eyes at the seemingly childish action, but it was for nought since she couldn't stop the smile spreading across her own features. That damn blond and his infectious smiles...

"Oh, Haku-chan..." Naruto said getting her attention. "...remind me to introduce you properly to my sister at some point." He continued, inwardly smirking as a look of disbelief spread across her face... unfortunately Shikamaru had to ruin his fun quickly.

"He doesn't have a sister... just some red-head that's related to him." Shikamaru stated. Haku furrowed her brows for a minute before a light bulb went off in her head.

"Oh! That girl we found during the second stage of the exams right?" She asked, which made Naruto nod. While the two discussed these things in the forest of death with Haku and Sasuke present, they didn't hear most of the conversation.

"Yeah, Karin. She moved here to be closer to her family... I feel a bit bad for making her leave her home, but she seemed quite adamant to do so." Naruto said with a small smile. Haku frowned at the thought of it. _'Could I leave Naruto-kun and this village to be with my family, if that were an option?' _She thought to herself. She'd have to conclude no, but she really couldn't be sure.

Naruto noticed the Sand Siblings looking worriedly at Gaara. He noticed the crazed boy seemed to be... well, more crazed than usual. He had an unmistakably bloodthirsty grin etched across his face, his eyes bloodshot and opened wide. Naruto frowned and narrowed his eyes at the boy, he didn't trust him to go down quietly if Sasuke started to win. He could only hope Shukaku wouldn't make an appearance.

"...I'll be back in a minute." Naruto said, not giving anyone a chance to reply to his statement as he utilized a **Shunshin **to leave. Haku just stared at the spot he once stood with an even expression, before turning back to the arena. Shikamaru was a little surprised by the fact he knew the **Shunshin** technique, but decided to drop it.

Naruto reappeared behind Guy, Kakashi and Lee – all of which were near Sakura's party of four – drawing nearby eyes to him due to the small shower of crystals that appeared in his wake, along with the distortion of the air.

"Yo." He said casually to everyone present, as Kakashi gave him a small wave, Guy gave him a weird thumbs up with the tooth flashing thing, Lee smiled awkwardly at him and everyone else just stared at him. Then there was Karin, who leapt out of her seat and jumped at him.

"Your awesome Nii-san! You kicked that Neji guy's ass!" She said, firmly hugging him as he rubbed her back, laughing a little nervously while everyone looked on with varying expressions. Kakashi and Guy were obviously surprised by the word 'Nii-san' while the rest of the people gained smiles at the action.

"Yes I did... but can this wait Karin-chan?" Naruto asked with amusement as she removed herself from him with an embarrassed blush. Naruto saw Kakashi and Guy's expressions and sighed, it was too bothersome to explain this so often.

"I'll explain later..." He said, as he walked over to Kakashi and whispered in his ear. "...I need to speak to you, follow me." He continued, walking away from the group and making them look at him with confusion as he walked up the steps to the upper level. Kakashi followed soon after and they both leaned against the wall to seem inconspicuous.

"I don't trust Suna." Naruto stated with determination. Kakashi was naturally surprised by this, and looked at Naruto for some elaboration. "...The sand team has been acting weird since the start... and bringing a Jinchūriki as unstable as Gaara to an event like this is a very questionable action." He continued, as Kakashi looked at him with both intense focus and a little pride in his observations.

"You have a fine point Naruto, but Suna IS our ally and a Jinchūriki is – whether you like it or not – an asset to a village. Gaara needs to be promoted at some point to prove his village's strength." Kakashi retorted as Naruto closed his eyes in concentration. He glared up at the Kazekage, who had been giving him bad signals all day.

"That's true, but the Kazekage has been exuding negative emotions all day... and his chakra is not normal. It's... sick." Naruto stated, as Kakashi looked confused for three reasons. Firstly, Naruto's apparent sixth sense for negative emotions. Secondly, chakra sensory. Thirdly, what did he mean by 'sick'?

"How do you know all this, and what do you mean by sick?" Kakashi asked, genuinely curious about Naruto's statement.

"I have an ability called Negative Emotions Sensing because of my... relationship with Ku-" Naruto said, before he caught himself. "...the Kyūbi. I'm also a natural sensor and I know what normal chakra 'looks' like... and this isn't the result of the **Jiton**." He continued, knowing full well the current Kazekage possessed the **Jiton** bloodline. Kakashi furrowed his brows at the sudden proclamation of Naruto's hidden abilities. The fact he stopped himself from saying something didn't elude Kakashi either.

"_**That was close mortal, I would've had to destroy you if you'd said my name."**_ Kurama threatened light-heartedly. He knew he couldn't harm Naruto, because the seal prevented it and because he found himself not really wanting to... for the moment. That's what he told himself anyway.

"_Sorry Kurama, but since I always call you by your name I forget only I'm meant to know." _Naruto replied. He was sorry, since he did want there to be some sort of trusting relationship between the two of them. Supposedly evil or not, Naruto couldn't help but wonder if the Kyūbi attack was how it was claimed to be. The fox was never exactly 'evil' in the way it acted, but maybe it was mellowed out by 13 years of imprisonment. He noticed Kakashi looking at him oddly and cut the link.

"Well, thanks for bringing this to me Naruto. For now, just continue to go about your business... but keep an eye on the Suna team." Kakashi ordered, making Naruto nod. As he prepared to return to the competitors booth, he spoke a few words.

"I'm worried about what Gaara will do if Sasuke pushes him too much..." The blond said ominously as he used his **Shunshin **to leave once more, leaving Kakashi to ponder his words. _'So am I...'_ He thought to himself as he walked back over to his little group.

"Where'd Naruto go?" Sakura asked as Karin piped up. Kakashi just rubbed the back of his head and shrugged. Sakura sighed and turned back to the arena as Karin pouted slightly that he didn't want to talk to her.

Naruto reappeared at the entrance to the competitors waiting room and looked over at the Sand Siblings. They definitely seemed jumpy, if he had to label it. Kankuro was clearly nervous, while Temari just wasn't really sitting still. He loudly coughed as he walked in, and had the evidence he needed when they both noticeably flinched.

"_What could they be up to?" _Naruto mentally questioned, unaware that Kurama had reopened the mental link at some point. He heard a distinct growl in his mind as he walked up to the railing, giving Haku a warm smile as he turned to face Sasuke and Gaara.

"_**They could be up to plenty of things... but Shukaku is restless. I can feel his chakra daring to escape as we speak."**_ Kurama replied, making Naruto nod in appreciation of the information. He'd mostly gotten used to the fox's way of starting their conversations, along with learning that making gestures while speaking to the fox made him look slightly insane.

"_This won't end well, will it?" _Naruto replied rhetorically, subconsciously looking over to Haku with a worried frown. If something big happened, he couldn't guarantee her safety... he might not be able to protect her. His vow was to his village, but could he break that for her? His first answer would be no, but he found that train of thought made him feel sick to his stomach.

"_**No, I don't think it will..."**_ Kurama replied, despite knowing he didn't need to. **_"...if you're worried about your mate, then don't. She was tough enough to kick your ass when you met."_** The fox continued, not realising that it was actually trying to comfort the blond. Being immortal didn't help you as much as you'd think.

Naruto let a ghost of a smile grace his lips as he thought of their meeting. It was such an unusual start to what has blossomed into a romantic relationship, official or not. They met as boy to girl-pretending-to-be-boy. Then the girl-pretending-to-be-boy attacked the boy and was beaten through special circumstances. Then the boy revealed the girl-pretending-to-be-boy to be a girl. Then the girl returned to the village with them, and joined them permanently despite losing her father figure to them. If she'd been even partially responsible for killing someone he loved, could he have forgiven her?

"_I guess you're right Kurama... thank you." _Naruto replied with no falsity to his tone. The fox just growled in annoyance that the boy was able to be so nice to the titanic being that literally impaled his mother and – not that he knew – his father. The blond cut the mental link and looked at the fight that seemed to be just beginning.

**-Sasuke VS Gaara-**

"So it finally begins..." Genma mused aloud, as the crowd began to get rather rowdy. "...The rules are the same as the preliminaries, the match will go until one of you forfeits or dies. I can also end the match any time I please." He finished, as Gaara began chuckling darkly. Sasuke raised an eyebrow in confusion, inwardly a little creeped out by the action.

"Fighters to the centre." The man said, as Gaara and Sasuke walked forward. Sasuke briefly looked up at Naruto and noticed his hard stare, putting him on edge instantly. Naruto wasn't really one to get concerned without reason.

"Haijime!" Genma called out, instantly jumping back after remembering what the other Jōnin said about the damage caused by Gaara's last fight.

Sand began to leak out of Gaara's gourd as Sasuke jumped back a decent distance to accurately evaluate and evade any attack that came his way. _'This sand again... I have to be careful not to let it get a hold of me...'_ Sasuke thought to himself.

Gaara's otherwise bloodthirsty and creepy stare was broken when a look of shock and then pain overcame his features, which made him grip his face and start mumbling about something that nobody around really understood. The only thing that came to Sasuke's mind was 'weird'.

"He's begun to converse now... this is bad." Kankuro mumbled, but Naruto's hearing was well above average due to his relation to the fox. He quickly spun his head and gave the boy a hard stare, to which Kankuro flinched at, sweating a little.

"I don't trust you." Naruto said with brutal honesty towards Kankuro and Temari, giving them a stare that promised pain should they do anything ill advised. The two inwardly seethed that the boy was suspicious of them. Haku, Shikamaru and Shino – who'd been ignored by the writer up until now – looked at Naruto with worry, who was still giving the Sand Siblings a stare. He then abruptly turned back to the arena with an even gaze.

It seemed as though they'd missed something, since there was now a **Suna Bushin (Sand Clone) **of Gaara holding two Shuriken that were obviously thrown by Sasuke, judging his stance. Sasuke dashed at Gaara, dodging a sand blast as he kicked the **Suna Bushin** before punching it in the face when it attempted to trap him. When he went to hit the real Gaara and a sand wall raised to stop him, he smirked, pivoted on his heel and... vanished.

He then reappeared behind Gaara with a sudden stop, punching the Sand user square in the face and causing the sand armour to crack. Gaara flew back to a sand-assisted halt while Naruto and Haku looked on with surprise.

"Damn, I knew Kakashi-sensei was a slave driver, but to make Sasuke the same speed as Lee in a month... that's ridiculous." Naruto stated, as Haku nodded whole-heartedly. Kakashi truly was a demon in disguise.

Seeing that Gaara had no intention to move, Sasuke charged him, having strange levels of ease dodging his sand blasts until he found an opening, charging in to give him a swift kick and flinging him away once more.

Sasuke ran towards Gaara without waiting this time, running circles around the boy until he ducked under a ring of sand that Gaara was employing as a defence mechanism. He gave him a quick kick, grabbing the straps of his outfit and pulling the Suna Shinobi onto his knee before moving away, with noticeable difficulty drawing breath.

Naruto frowned at the display, it made him realise that in his almost primal urge to learn new Ninjutsu and techniques that he'd neglected his physical conditioning. If Sasuke could move this fast, it didn't matter how many techniques he could use. He needed to work on everything evenly.

Gaara then held up a hand sign, as sand began to encroach on him from all directions. It eventually settled into a large sphere known as the **Suna no Tate (Shield of Sand)** in which Gaara was almost untouchable. Sasuke attempted to get a shot in before it closed, but was very nearly impaled by multiple sand spikes that shot out of the side when he got near.

A small eye of sand materialized in the air nearby the **Suna no Tate**, much to Sasuke's surprise. Sasuke attempted to use his speed and strength to find a way to break into the sphere, only to find none of hits efforts were bearing fruit.

Sasuke then ran high up one of the walls before stopping, keeping himself rooted with chakra. He held his bandages arm down to the ground... or wall, while the other gripped his wrist tightly. Much to the surprise of Naruto and Guy lightning began to gather and spark around his hands in a very recognisable fashion.

"Seriously? Kakashi-sensei taught him _that?_" Naruto said aloud with clear surprise. Haku wasn't really sure what he was talking about, having missed Kakashi using it in Nami due to her... unconsciousness.

The Uchiha heir swept the bandaged arm to the side, the lightning blazing along with it while the other arm gripped his shoulder. Naruto was unsure if that was essential to using the technique or just habit. He then sprinted down the wall and kicked off toward Gaara, shoving his hand straight through the sand shield.

"**CHIDORI! (One Thousand Birds!)"** Sasuke called out, as his hand pierced the sand shield and dug directly into Gaara's shoulder. Gaara began to scream out in shock and pain at the fact that he'd been wounded, for the first time. Ever. Sasuke flared his **Chidori** once more to escape, noticing a distinctly demonic arm following him out. Naruto's eyes widened, as he swept his head around to the Sand Siblings.

"Is that what I think it is!?" He almost shouted at the two, who were equally worried as he was. Despite their plan Gaara still scared them senseless, and Shukaku was the most horrifying thing either of them had the discomfort of seeing.

The arm then retracted into the Sand Shield as Sasuke gripped his arm in pain. He then saw another distinctly demonic feature within the circular shield, a large yellow crossed iris. Sasuke shuddered in fear at the imposing stare he was shot.

The sand shield crumbled to reveal a bleeding, seemingly petrified Gaara. His shoulder was bleeding, and yet the brown strap over his shoulder wasn't damaged in the slightest, despite the fact the **Chidori** made a rather large hold in the almost impenetrable **Suna no Tate**. There were no inhuman features on the boy, confusing Sasuke greatly.

Naruto then felt a chakra spike and felt a veritable sea of chakra falling from above. Looking up, he noticed a mass of white feathers falling from the skies. He bit his lip as he began to feel tired.

"Damn... it... Genjutsu!" He said as he fell to the ground. Having greater chakra control and not having the same glaring weakness with Genjutsu, Haku was easily able to dispel it. Shino didn't fall asleep, so either his insects prevented such a thing happening or he dispelled it.

Then an explosion in the Kage booth covered the Sandaime Hokage and Kazekage – along with their guards – in a thick smoke, shocking mostly all the [Konoha] Jōnin. The Genin weren't really sure how to react in such a situation.

Temari and Kankuro used the commotion to get to Gaara, to prevent him going off the plan for any longer. Genma and Baki then appeared by Sasuke and the Sand Siblings respectively. Baki informed Temari and Kankuro that they should retreat with Gaara to allow him time to recuperate, while he stayed behind and dealt with Genma.

"What's going on?" Sasuke asked, getting no obvious response. In the meantime, Haku was dispelling the effects of the Genjutsu on Naruto, who woke up groggily. He shook his head a little and stood to his feet.

"I really need to work on my Genjutsu... at least dispelling them... this is getting embarrassing." He said lowly, disappointed in the fact he was so easily subdued. He looked around, noticing a barrier atop the Hokage viewing area and various Shinobi squaring off across the arena.

He also noticed Sasuke running out of the arena and furrowed his brows, he must've been given some instruction to do so. His face became serious as he realised the gravity of the situation, Konoha was being invaded by Suna.

"Haku. Shino. Let's back up Sasuke, he likely has important instructions." Naruto said commandingly, dropping the affectionate suffix from Haku's name to give them an idea of how serious he was being.

"Hai." The two said in tandem, as they all followed Sasuke's path, going up and over the wall. Haku and Shino looked forward to Naruto and then to each other.

"How do we intend to track him?" Haku asked, as Naruto hummed in thought.

"Sensory, Shino's insects... we'll have no trouble keeping up. _Not to mention Shukaku is like a beacon._" Naruto said, muttering the last part to himself as Shino looked on with an investigative stare, having heard Naruto mutter something.

"What will we do when we catch up to him?" Shino asked, as Naruto closed his eyes in thought and still managed to not hit into anything. He opened them and looked to the sky searchingly.

"We have two options, follow whatever instruction he was given or retreat for further orders. Opinions?" Naruto said, questioning what his two teammates thought.

"I believe we should follow the instruction." Shino said calmly, as Haku just nodded. Naruto let out a small snort of laughter as he ran.

"Good... I was thinking the same." He replied, as they all burst off to catch up to the Uchiha heir.

**-Deep in the Forest-**

After a little while of non-stop running the three were getting noticeably far away from Konoha and the stadium. Naruto couldn't help but wonder just what Sasuke's instructions were, but if the Sand Siblings were there he could take a guess.

"We're close. He's not far now..." Naruto stated, as Shino's insects buzzed, telling him the same. Haku was inwardly impressed with how he quickly took charge in the situation, but as a future Hokage he would need that skill. "...his chakra is agitated, he must be fighting, since the Suna team is very close to him." He added, as they picked up the pace a little.

They arrived to see Sasuke talking to Kankuro and Temari, while Gaara lay on a branch. Temari then picked up Gaara and left as Sasuke prepared to fight Kankuro.

"You're really bad at waiting for backup... you know that right?" Naruto said, as the three landed besides Sasuke, who flashed a grin as they arrived. Kankuro naturally got worried that he'd have to fight 4 people.

"Like I need your help." Sasuke said with false arrogance. Kankuro began to seethe that everything was going wrong.

"Kankuro..." Naruto said, catching the Suna Shinobi a little off guard. "...is Gaara going to release _it?_" He asked. Kankuro actually grinned a little at this, as he nodded. Naruto grit his teeth and looked over at the others in his party.

"Then we have no time to waste... someone will need to stay here and deal with Kankuro. Gaara must be stopped." Naruto stated, his tone not betraying the worry he felt. He inwardly wished Haku would volunteer to stop Kankuro, he didn't want her subjected to the power of a Jinchūriki that let their beast out.

"What are you talking about Naruto? You're not acting like yourself here." Sasuke said, as he gave Naruto an attentive stare. Naruto met his stare with a small glare, making Sasuke raise an eyebrow. It was unlike Naruto to lose his composure about something.

"Gaara isn't normal, I'm sure you saw that... thing come out of his **Suna no Tate**." Naruto said. Sasuke widened his eyes at the implications, clearly whatever the thing that came out was not the extent of Gaara's true power.

"Then what was that exactly?" Sasuke asked, as Naruto sighed.

"Pray we don't need to find out." Naruto lied convincingly. Sasuke let out a small growl due to being somewhat stonewalled by his teammate as Shino moved forward a few steps.

"I'll be his opponent..." Shino said, as Naruto sighed in failure. "...after all, I was meant to be his opponent anyway." He continued, making the rest of the party nod.

"Will you be alright?" Haku asked concernedly, making Shino nod with no hesitation. "...then be careful." She stated, as Sasuke began to jump away. Naruto dead-panned at his teammate, who was apparently incapable of waiting for others to back him up.

"Slow down you idiot!" Naruto shouted as he ran off after the Uchiha boy, followed by Haku.

After catching up to Sasuke and giving him a disapproving glare, they continued to follow after Temari and Gaara. They saw Temari put down Gaara after catching up, quickly followed by Gaara hitting Temari away and into a nearby tree.

Naruto began to sweat slightly at the action. Gaara's second skin of sand was even beginning to crack away, the boy was clearly losing control of Shukaku. They got closer, and were spotted by the two Suna Shinobi.

_'No! He's already past Kankuro, and he brought the one who's like Gaara!'_ Temari screamed in her mind, this was beginning to look bad. It would end badly enough with an out of control Gaara, but if Naruto were to lose control himself... it would be a battle of monsters.

"Gaara..." Naruto said loudly. "...stop this **NOW!**" He continued, shouting the last part angrily, surprising his two teammates greatly. When Gaara began to grip his head, his armour cracking away more and more, Naruto began to grow very concerned.

"I don't care what's going on here! You cannot release it!" He pleaded, hoping that Gaara still had some semblance of control, which much to the blond's discomfort he did not. Sasuke and Haku were growing very concerned, Naruto seemed adamant that Gaara be stopped. Haku unfortunately remembered the reason, and it scared her to no end.

"Stop Gaara!" Temari shouted, as everyone – except Gaara anyway – turned to face her. "...did you forget about the plan?" She continued, though her statement fell upon deaf ears.

"Uzumaki... Uchiha... you are strong, you are both like me. Uchiha, your eyes are like mine... Uzumaki, your burden is like mine. However, you have friends, goals..." Gaara said menacingly, as he shot them a deranged stare.

"By killing you I can prove my existence! I will continue to live! I will be able to feel alive!" He called out, and Sasuke couldn't help but remember the time they met in the place he spent his month training.

"You are my..." He continued, until he dropped to his knees and began to cry out in pain. "You... are my... PREY!" He shouted in agony as his sand armour continued to deteriorate. Sand then began to overcome him, but not like it usually did. This time it formed a massive claw-like appendage over his right arm, adorned with strange blue markings. Half of his face also took the sandy appearance of a Tanuki, with one of his eyes sharing the same iris as the one in the **Suna no Tate**.

"_**This isn't good mortal, this is the first stage of the transformation."**_ Kurama spoke from within Naruto's mind, while the blond seethed in a mixture of annoyance and anger. Their 'plan' obviously involved throwing Shukaku at the village like a glorified pet. To use a Jinchūriki like that made him angrier than he'd been in a while.

"Let me test your existence!" Gaara shouted, as he jumped towards the three teammates like a rabid dog. He swung the large claw of sand, which extended to ridiculous proportions as it flew through the air and slammed into the branch where the three once stood.

"_This... this chakra he's exerting! It's so powerful and... evil... I don't know if I can stop a rampaging Jinchūriki..."_ Naruto exclaimed in his mind, as he heard a snort of derision from within.

"_**If you get beaten by that overgrown Tanuki I will crush you myself! You are the Jinchūriki of the Kyūbi! He is the Ichibi! Show him what true power is!"**_ Kurama shouted at Naruto, trying to cover up the fact he was encouraging him

"_You're right... if we don't stop him he'll lay waste to the village and... he'll kill her."_ Naruto said, realising that Haku's life depended on the outcome of this fight.

"COME OUT!" Gaara called from a small distance away. "...are you afraid!? Let me taste your power!" He shouted crazily. Naruto grit his teeth and scanned with his sensory ability. He found Haku and Sasuke unharmed a short distance away.

_**'Kage Bushin no Jutsu.'**_ Naruto thought to himself as he held up the clone hand seal. Two clones poofed into existence in front of him and then placed their hands into signs of their own.

_**'Henge no Jutsu (Transformation Technique)'**_ They thought to themselves as they both transformed into a Shuriken. Naruto picked up the two Shuriken and slowly walked up the tree until reaching a branch with some shrubbery to hide in.

Naruto took the two 'Shuriken', each in one hand, and threw them at Gaara. He insured he'd be able to remain hidden while doing so. The two 'Shuriken' were blocked by Gaara's sand arm but then changed back into clones, each wielding a Kunai. They both tried to stab Gaara, but were repelled by the sand claw. Naruto furrowed his brows at the action.

_'His fighting style has completely changed... he was a ranged fighter before, using sand almost all the time... now he's a close range fighter, using only that claw.'_ Naruto thought with a frown. Everything he'd learned about Gaara was out the window now, he'd have to find a way around this.

"Why do you hide Uzumaki? Show me your true self!" Gaara shouted. Haku and Sasuke assumed Gaara meant his true self as in not clones, but Naruto knew better. Gaara wanted him to show his beast.

"Fine, let's try this!" Naruto called out, as he jumped into the air from cover, flanked with a single clone. They both went through seals as they flew through the air.

"**Fūton: Reppūshō!"** The real Naruto called out.

"**Katon: Endan!"** The clone called out, as the flame bullet and the wind blast collided and shot towards Gaara like a flaming comet. The Suna Jinchūriki blocked the attack with his sand claw, but the intense heat and speed caused him to cry out in pain as he flew back off his branch. Naruto then quickly ran over to Sasuke, as Haku joined them.

"We need some sort of plan here..." Naruto said lowly, as the other two nodded to him. This wasn't exactly a situation any of them wanted to be in. Naruto quickly went through some thoughts, trying to think of ways to resolve the situation.

"Alright... he's using that sand arm for attack and defence, so we either need a way to approach him without getting hit or we need to attack from a distance with speed so he can't block..." He then looked over to his teammate/lover. "...Haku-chan, can you use chakra flow with those Senbon of yours?" He asked, as she nodded. "Good, you can throw those at a distance while using chakra flow to pierce him." He stated.

"Well, I can use fire from a distance with your wind techniques, I can mix **Raiton **techniques with Haku's **Suiton** techniques or I can try and go in for a **Chidori**." Sasuke stated, as Naruto rubbed his chin. He was about to answer when he heard Gaara ploughing through trees.

"WHY DO YOU RUN?!" The crazed red-head exclaimed from a large distance. It became obvious this state made it basically impossible for Gaara to accurately track them.

"The **Chidori **is a last hurrah, I don't want you trying to use it only to get slammed into a tree." Naruto commanded. Sasuke growled slightly before submitting.

"No use keeping the psycho waiting, we have the number advantage and we can mix techniques as we please, let's just be careful about it." Naruto spoke, as they all broke cover and jumped different directions to face Gaara.

"Aha! You're ready to prove my existence!" Gaara shouted as he swung his arm at Sasuke, who promptly jumped up to avoid it. He threw six Kunai at Gaara, which were seemingly absorbed by his arm.

"Have them back!" Gaara stated, as the six Kunai shot back out of the arm with alarming speed. To Sasuke's surprise, all 6 Kunai were stopped in the air. He looked at them closely and saw 6 Senbon within the rings, having slowed down the momentum of the blades. Naruto flashed Haku a smile as he created 10 clones.

"Let's try this." Naruto said quietly as all 10 clones formed a blade of crystal over their arm.

"**Shōton: Suishō Tō! (Crystal Release: Jade Crystal Blade!)"** Was called out by every clone as the dashed forward at Gaara, all coming in at different angles. Gaara swung his arm and dispelled about 5 of them, while the remainder got close by. One went for a downward slice with the blade on Gaara, who promptly blocked it with the arm. To his surprise the blade dug into the arm a fair distance before stopping, where a small tendril of sand shot out the side of the arm and impaled the clone.

The other four clones were not being idle though, and each of them got close to Gaara and took a swipe. Gaara blocked two and dispelled one, but the last got a nice cut on his non-transformed arm, making Gaara roar in pain before simply punching it with his free hand. He then swept the sand arm around, dispelling the last two clones. Unfortunately for Gaara the onslaught was not over.

"**Suiton: Mizurappa!" **Haku called out, as she fired a large amount of water from her mouth towards the transforming red-head.

"**Raiton: Kangekiha!" **Sasuke shouted, as the water Haku fired off electrified and fizzled as it shot forward, slamming into Gaara and washing him down to ground level. Naruto smirked at the fruits of their labour, it was clear the three of them working in tandem wasn't allowing this fight to go in Gaara's favour.

Temari was getting worried for her brother. While she was afraid of him, he was still her brother even if she'd never needed to fear for his well being before. Now though, these three were doing some damage to the boy, and he could hardly keep up.

The three teammates jumped down to ground level as Gaara was rising off the ground. He growled at them with clear rage and primal fury. To Naruto's ire, his gourd spilled more sand that quickly shaped into a make-shift tail of sand. It was also adorned with the blue markings that the rest of the transformation was, meaning he was still going through the transformation.

"You are worthy! Your death will be the proof I need! The proof of my existence!" Gaara shouted, as he shot towards them with newfound speed. Naruto cursed and began going through hand signs.

"**Shōton: Suishō Kyō! (Crystal Release: Jade Crystal Mirror!)" **Naruto called out, as a green snowflake-shaped crystal mirror materialized in front of them. Naruto somewhat frowned at the fact the mirror was reflective since he wanted to see what was happening. To his surprise and horror, the mirror cracked and shattered as the deranged face of Gaara was revealed to him.

"No!" Naruto spat out quickly as he worriedly activated his crystal armour, which likely protected him from being torn in half as Gaara slammed his clawed arm into his chest and shot him through several trees. The half-transformed Jinchūriki then quickly lashed out at Haku, throwing her back a little while while she let out a cry of pain. Unfortunately for Gaara, he'd forgotten someone.

"**Chidori!" **Sasuke said as he chopped Gaara's sand arm clean off, as the boy howled in pain. His newly formed tail then swung towards the Uchiha who threw his arms up in a cross guard before he was sent flying as well.

"You are all going to die!" Gaara shouted. "...Your hatred is too weak! Hatred is the key to power!" He roared, as Naruto growled and stood up shakily, his crystal armour cracked and breaking apart. He walked forward a few paces, before falling to one knee and spitting out some blood, an angry scowl adorning his face as his eyes began to flicker red.

"How dare he touch her..." Naruto growled lowly. Gaara looked over at him and saw the shifting eyes, cerulean blue to blood red, normal to slits, and actually began to shiver a little at the furious gaze he was being shot. The sand arm that Sasuke removed grew back from the sand in Gaara's gourd as he drooled primitively, like a wild dog.

"Quit spouting such nonsense!" Naruto roared, as he ran forward with all the speed he could muster. "Hatred leads to nothing! Hatred leads to loneliness, to more suffering! I refuse to listen to your illogical babbling!" He shouted, as Gaara swept his arm at the blond with rare seriousness. Naruto responded by jumping onto the arm and running across it, delivering a harsh, crystal covered kick to Gaara's face.

Naruto's teammates caught the rare outburst of pure emotion and shivered slightly at the anger carried along with his words. Haku noticed the death glare he was shooting Gaara, which brought confusion to her mind. Naruto wouldn't normally be set off by something as minor as a mad man chanting about hatred. She tried to stand, but was forced to stop when pain overcame her. She didn't even notice Naruto coming over to her, worry evident in his eyes.

"Haku-chan... are you alright?" He asked softly, as she cracked open a single eye and gave him a small smile. She then let out a cough and – with his assistance – rose to her feet with a small stagger. Naruto sighed in relief before looking over at Sasuke who other than some injuries on his arms looked fine.

Gaara stood back to his feet once more, his smile deepening as Naruto began to unknowingly embrace his own form of hatred... hatred of those who hurt his loved ones. His glare moved over to Haku as he chuckled darkly, he would get Naruto to hate him whether the blond wanted to or not. The only question was how far he'd need to go.

Naruto looked over at Sasuke, who was looking back at him with a clearly searching gaze. Naruto closed his eyes and lowered his head, he'd not intended to lose his temper... but anyone who hurt Haku would not escape his wrath.

_**'Yes... embrace your anger... channel it... let it free!'**_ Kurama mentally exclaimed gleefully. Naruto may not be like his previous Jinchūriki, but that didn't mean he never intended to escape from the boy. That was what the fox told itself anyway.

"No need to throw a tantrum Dobe." Sasuke said mockingly, trying to rein in the blond through insults. Naruto snorted at him with annoyance, but he knew Sasuke was right. He'd need a level head if this situation continued to escalate.

"I understand that Sasuke." Naruto said neutrally. Sasuke smiled slightly, glad that Naruto was not quite so different from the one he'd known a month ago.

"Anyway, I have an idea. Keep him busy." Sasuke said, as he began to jump up into the trees and out of sight. Gaara caught the action and jumped towards him.

"Where are you going!? Fight me Uchiha!" Gaara called as he jumped up. His flight was cut short when Naruto jumped at him and punched him back down to the ground and shot him a determined expression.

"Your opponent is _ME_." He said confidently, as Haku too adopted a neutral gaze and looked over to him, both nodding at one another. Gaara growled angrily at the two interrupting his chase of Sasuke, since he wasn't one to let people escape him.

"You are **MY** prey! You cannot stop me!" Gaara roared, as the ghost of a smile graced Naruto's features.

"Last I checked, Tanuki weren't the best hunters." Naruto stated as Gaara roared angrily at him, as he was being influenced by Shukaku. Shukaku didn't like to be belittled, especially by the Jinchūriki of his least liked brother.

"Do not undermine my existence Uzumaki! I will destroy you, and then I will be truly alive!" Gaara shouted as Haku snorted in disgust, much to Naruto's surprise. Haku didn't usually allow any reaction to escape her during combat.

"I pity you." Haku stated plainly, making Gaara growl at her. "...to live only to kill others; to never experience love or the warmth of being with another... is a fate nobody deserves." She continued, glancing over to Naruto with a small smile that he returned warmly.

"Fools! All of you will fall to my hatred!" He said, as he rocketed forward towards Haku. He was stopped when a few crystal needles came very close to spearing through his eye socket. He leaned to the side to evade the needles and skidded to a stop as Naruto ran at him and threw a punch that Gaara leaned away from.

Gaara quickly swept his arm around to slam Naruto out of his way, but the blond promptly crouched under it while flashing Gaara a smile. A few Senbon imbued with wind chakra then shot at Gaara, but he blocked them with the tail that they'd mostly forgotten about. The same tail then came over Gaara and attempted to crush Naruto, who jumped away quickly to avoid certain death.

Naruto snorted at Gaara before running back at him, kicking out his right leg, which was almost instantly blocked by the sand arm. Gaara then pushed Naruto away slightly using the arm as his tail tried to skewer the blond. Naruto leaned out of the way, falling on a hand before spinning himself around on it, pushing off the ground and kicking Gaara again.

Gaara growled in anger that his 'prey' was being so efficient at evading and replying to his attacks. It was as if Naruto had it written into his brain how to fight his moves. In reality, it was a lot more simple and a hell of a lot more believable.

Naruto had worked hard to ensure he could anticipate and react to an enemy attack, regardless of speed. He was on the same team as an Uchiha, who were the ultimate fighters when it came to seeing and responding to attacks without getting hit, so he'd raised his reaction time and reflexes to allow him to fight evenly with Sasuke. He also naturally focused on his footwork, as though his referral of fighting as 'dancing' actually applied to his fighting style. The chances of him actually matching the Sharingan in attack perception were laughably low, but he could do as much as naturally possible.

"What's the matter Gaara? Fox got your tail?" He taunted, trying to make Gaara focus solely on him to give Sasuke a better chance of getting the drop of the red-head. He was tempting death at this point though, and Haku couldn't get a shot in if Naruto was fighting so up close.

Gaara charged forward at Naruto as he spun on his heel, causing the sand claw to go barely over his back as Naruto stayed rooted to the spot. Due to the momentum of the charge, the claw continued to move forward with Gaara along with it, so Naruto was easily able to turn a little and punch Gaara in the face, before sweeping the red-head's legs out from under him – making him fall on his back – and jumping back.

_'What the hell is taking Sasuke so long?' _Naruto thought to himself impatiently. He then felt a small chakra spike above Gaara and smiled openly, confusing everybody present.

"**Raiton: Kaminarino Bura Suto! (Lightning Release: Blasting Thunder!)"** Sasuke shouted, as he plummeted down towards Gaara – his fist charged with lightning – and delivered a strong punch to the boy's chest. A powerful shockwave erupted from the punch as the red-head slammed into the ground, kicking up a very large dust storm while a crash echoed through the area. Sasuke jumped out of the smoke storm and stood next to Naruto, panting a little.

"Well you took a while, but nice work Sasuke." Naruto said, more than a little impressed by the damage he caused with the technique. Sasuke shook his head a little, to the surprise of Naruto who looked at him for elaboration.

"The technique isn't very powerful on its own, the momentum from the drop magnified the damage a lot." Sasuke said informatively, as Naruto nodded and looked back over to where Gaara was, not that they could see him.

"**SUNA SHURIKEN! (Sand Shuriken!)"** Called a voice from within the dust storm, as several large shuriken of sand began to fire out from within the dust storm. Thinking fast, Naruto jumped in front of Haku and activated his crystal armour, absorbing most of the damage. Fortunately the force on the shuriken couldn't do enough damage to piece his armour, but it did leave him rather winded. Sasuke just evaded everything with his speed and time perception.

The dust and smoke began to clear away and much to Naruto's surprise, Gaara's transformation had actually progressed regardless of the strong blow that was just inflicted upon him. He now had two sand claws, a fully transformed body and face and a tail. His legs were not transformed, which made Naruto question how he could stay standing with all the weighty sand. Weirdly, his red tattoo-style symbol on his head was recreated in the transformed state.

"_**At this rate, full possession will occur." **_Kurama stated, as Naruto grit his teeth. Things were already beginning to spiral out of his control, and the more the transformation progressed the more difficult dealing with Gaara was going to be. If Gaara went full Bijū mode, the odds wouldn't be in their favour.

"_What can I do if it gets that far?" _Naruto asked the titanic fox, who let out something that resembled an unknowing grunt.

"_**Well, I'd just burn him to a crisp and tear out his scorching innards... you could summon that overgrown tadpole if you want... that's all you really got."**_ Kurama replied lazily as Naruto blanched at the image of a giant sandy Tanuki being burned alive and eaten.

"_Damn, thanks anyway Kurama..."_ Naruto said, as the fox inwardly growled at the way Naruto appreciated his help. He didn't want to be thanked, he wanted to be feared!

"What do you all fight for? Yourselves... or others?" Gaara asked suddenly, catching the group off guard. "...to fight for others is to forget yourself, and then what is your reason to exist? If your existence relies on others, you are not truly alive!" He said determinedly.

_'To fight for others gives you strength... I know... from experience.'_ Naruto thought with a scowl, he'd never have defeated Haku if Sasuke wasn't in danger. He wouldn't have held up against Orochimaru without his friends to help him... and he wouldn't have such a reason to beat Gaara if his lover's life wasn't at risk.

"Let's see what happens when your life is truly at risk. Let's see you abandon your so called friends and loved ones. Let's see you work only for your own survival!" Gaara called out, as Haku and Sasuke looked at Naruto, who was looking down at the ground with his eyes closed.

"If that's what you think..." Naruto started. "...if you truly believe hatred makes you strong; that fighting for yourself will bring you victory... then prove it! Defeat us!" Naruto called out with equal determination, as Gaara smiled devilishly.

"Let us see who's beliefs are truly the strongest!" The Suna Jinchūriki shouted as he began to inhale a large amount of air. Naruto snarled and turned to his teammates.

"Get out of the way! NOW!" He shouted, as they all bolted behind the various trees that surrounded the area.

"**Fūton: Mugen Sajin – Daitoppa! (Wind Release: Infinite Sand Cloud – Great Breakthrough!)"** Gaara shouted as he exhaled a powerful blast of wind, enhanced by countless sand particles within the wind. The technique began to grind away at the trees and surrounding area as the members of Team 7 held up their arms in defence from the sand.

"_Now he can use Fūton? Does his transformation really allow such a sudden change?" _Naruto thought with bewilderment. Kurama hummed in thought before answering.

"_**In theory you should be able to use Katon while using my chakra, but that'll likely be version 2 cloak only."**_ Kurama replied, as Naruto raised his eyebrows. It was a rather interesting ability for a Jinchūriki to have, to literally adopt their Bijū's affinities temporarily.

"_Interesting..."_ Naruto replied, as he cut the link and began to think. Then he smirked deviously, in a way that was rather out of character for him. _'If he doesn't want to protect his legs, I'll give him a good reason to in future...'_ He thought to himself as he touched the ground, using his sensing to identify Gaara's exact location before placing his hand in the bird seal.

"**Doton: Doryūsō!" **The blond called out, as spears of stone emerged from the ground at Gaara's feet, impaling themselves through his thighs. Naruto gained a sense of morbid satisfaction as he heard the boy cry out in pain.

"My blood... again... you will die Uzumaki!" Gaara shrieked out crazily. Naruto just huffed and sat down, ensuring not to make his position obvious to Gaara. He placed a finger on the ground and closed his eyes, searching for his teammates. He was a little confused as to why Temari had refused to move this entire time, but decided it was better she not intervene.

He found the two of them a small distance away. He noticed that Sasuke had quite a low amount of chakra since he'd used the **Chidori** twice already, along with other techniques. Haku seemed better, but neither would last too much longer.

"I have suffered the most, been alone the longest... and it has made me the strongest!" Gaara shouted, throwing **Suna Shuriken **through numerous trees as he felt something behind him. He turned to see Naruto leaning against a tree with a determined expression.

"Let me tell you something that someone very special to me once said..." Naruto said. He was a little surprised when Gaara lowered his guard to listen. "...'_When a person has something important they want to protect, that's when they become truly strong_.'" Naruto said, as Haku's eye widened. _'I said that to him, was that truly so important to him?'_ She thought with surprise, though it brought her no small measure of joy to think her words meant so much to the blond.

Gaara sneered at Naruto as he finished the sentence, and quickly threw several **Suna Shuriken** at him. They seemed to slam into him and send him flying away, before he dispersed into smoke.

"You didn't think I was stupid enough to just present myself to you, did you Gaara?" Naruto's voice sounded from multiple places around the forest, before more poofs of smoke could be heard. _'He created clones just so Gaara wouldn't know where he was when he spoke... smart.' _Sasuke thought with a smirk.

"_He's really close to full transformation... how do I take him down quickly?" _Naruto mentally spoke, not actually asking for an answer. Kurama decided to allow Naruto to work this one out on his own, since his Jinchūriki couldn't just rely on others. Then he had an idea.

Gaara looked around shakily, his thighs still bleeding rather badly. Then he heard the distinct sound of running and breaking twigs. He looked around and saw numerous clones of Naruto running towards him. He swept his arms around and unleashed more **Suna Shuriken** at them, dispelling a fair few. He then spun around, whipping his tail around to take care of a few behind him.

A foot then connected with his face, forcing him back a few steps before he unleashed another blast of sand-enhanced wind. This dispelled almost all the remaining clones, but the few that remained all adopted a smirk. Something then broke through the ground beneath Gaara, as he felt something pierce his rear. He huffed at the futile attempt to hurt him, until the 'futile effort' turned into a fairly large explosion.

Gaara was enveloped in smoke as Naruto broke through the ground near the treeline. He was then joined by Sasuke and Haku who had been taking the time to recuperate some chakra. Naruto noticed that he was actually feeling a significant drain on his own chakra, not enough to stop him but enough to make him feel it. He'd never really experienced chakra exhaustion before and it was weird to be getting there.

_'His legs weren't covered, so the bottom of him should've been the weakest source of sand...'_ Naruto thought to himself, it was only logical. He suddenly felt as though he would've done that whether he deduced Gaara's weakness or not... maybe as some stupid gesture where he copied Kakashi's joke jutsu.

Naruto stared at the smoke cloud and rolled his eyes, he wasn't going to allow Gaara to ambush him through smoke again. He clapped his hands together and moulded his chakra.

"**Fūton: Reppūshō!" **He called out, thrusting his hands forward as a small gale of wind swept forward towards the smoke cloud and blew it away. After it was sufficiently cleared away, it revealed Gaara's sand body was rather badly damaged, at least half of him having regressed into normal sand. Naruto smirked slightly as he walked forward slowly and victoriously, much to Gaara's worry.

_'No! He fights for those other than himself, his hatred is nothing compared to mine! His suffering is NOTHING! I WILL NOT LOSE TO HIM!' _Gaara shouted mentally, as his head shot upwards to the sky. Naruto stopped and furrowed his brows at the action as Gaara's mouth shot open.

"I will not lose to this guy!" Gaara shouted, as a humongous mass of sand emerged from where Gaara was stood and rocketed upwards to the sky. The mere eruption of the sand was enough to send Team 7 reeling backwards, as Naruto looked on with worry. He'd felt a massive chakra spike before the emergence, and he could guess what was going on. The sand was...

The Ichibi, Shukaku.

Naruto growled at the action as his teammates gawked at the transformation. The blond had given him plenty of chances to avoid this course of action, now it was time to end this farce.

"Haku. Sasuke." Naruto said commandingly. "...stand close." He ordered, as the two complied slowly. He bit his finger and went through some hand seals as he unleashed a fair amount of his tenant's chakra. Sasuke and Haku had to hold up an arm in defence of the chakra spike, before Naruto slammed his hand down on the ground.

"**Kuchiyose no Jutsu." **Naruto said, as a massive explosion of spoke enveloped them. The smoke eventually cleared, and much to the surprise of Haku and Sasuke, they were now stood atop a _very large _toad.

_'How is he capable of this?'_Sasuke mentally questioned, less out of jealousy and more out of amazement.

_'You truly are amazing... Naruto-kun.'_ Haku thought with a small smile, despite their current situation.

"Sorry to bring you into this 'Bunta, but this overgrown Tanuki needs to be taught a lesson." Naruto said confidently, as Gamabunta looked over at the titanic form of Shukaku with a little surprise. Sure, he'd been summon against Kurama in the past but Bijū battles weren't exactly a common occurrence anymore.

"**You're an interesting kid, you know that?"** The toad stated, as Naruto flashed it a warm smile while closing his eyes. Naruto's cloak was billowing in the wind as he looked over at the form of Shukaku, giving him quite the interesting image to those who could have been watching.

"Well... let's not keep him waiting." Naruto said determinedly. Gamabunta nodded and burst forward with speed not exactly expected of a toad – massive or not – and drew his equally titanic Tantō. He then dug the blade into one of Shukaku's arms, cutting it clean off with a little difficulty. The action caused his blade to leave his hands, and it slammed into the ground between the two massive beings.

Over on Gaara's side, he began to emerge from the head of Shukaku's form and he placed his hands in the ram seal. His body then noticeably went limp, as Shukaku's eyes brightened and he let out a loud laugh.

"**I'm finally out!" **The Tanuki shouted loudly with glee. Naruto and his friends raised an eyebrow at the strange actions of the otherwise extremely imposing and powerful being. Naruto looked down at the toad questioningly, and he somewhat shrugged.

"**Hey, I've already found someone to kill!"** The Bijū shouted, as Naruto just looked on impassively. He wasn't sure how strong Gamabunta was compared to a Bijū but he was confident that they could hold their own.

"Hey 'Bunta, he's building up a lot of chakra. We need to move." Naruto stated, as his teammates looked on with a little awe of how commandingly he was acting to the giant toad. Gamabunta nodded and jumped into the air as Shukaku slammed him stomach with one of its arms.

"**Fūton: Renkūdan! (Wind Release: Drilling Air Bullet!)" **Shukaku called out as he released a powerful stream at the huge toad, who was already in the clear.

"**Suiton: Teppōdama! (Water Release: Gunshot!)"** Gamabunta called out, as he shot a massive ball of water towards Shukaku, who responded with another air bullet to cancel out the technique.

Gamabunta landed and quickly jumped again, as Shukaku fired three more balls of air at him. The toad responded with two gunshots, while the third air bullet hit him and caused him to fall to earth with a large amount of smoke following him.

"**That hurt, damn it!" **Gamabunta shouted as he emerged from the smoke. Naruto had a thought as they began to charge forward. He decided to air his thoughts first.

"To stop Shukaku, we need to wake up Gaara right?" Naruto said, as Bunta nodded. "...then I have an idea, can you use a **Suiton** technique that fires a constant stream of water?" Naruto asked, as Gamabunta nodded once more. Gamabunta closed the distance between them a little before building up a mass of water.

"**Suiton: Mizudeppō! (Water Release: Water Gun!)" **The giant toad exclaimed as a large amount of water was fired from its mouth in a stream, quickly overcoming the entirety of Shukaku... besides it's head anyway, since it was shielding it with it's remaining arm.

Naruto began to build up a large amount of chakra before getting down as close to Gamabunta's mouth as possible. He planted both hands on the toad's head and began to channel his chakra, clearly causing him to use a lot of chakra. As if on cue, the mass of water began to crystallize starting from directly in front of Gamabunta and spreading down until it completely overcame Shukaku. Naturally, everyone present was rather shocked.

"Amazing... such scale." Haku muttered, as she saw just how much water Naruto had crystallized. It seemed like Naruto had a much easier time crystallizing water as a medium rather than just creating crystals from moisture in the air, but it still almost depleted his reserves to crystallize so much.

"There... he's unable to fight... back for now, get us close." Naruto ordered as Gamabunta shook off his shock from seeing such an impressive action and jumped over Shukaku. Naruto then jumped off the toad and in front of Gaara, leaving Haku and Sasuke on board. Naruto charged the last of his chakra into his fist; creating a layer of crystal as he slammed the boy's jaw with a harsh punch.

"Nobody threatens my village!" Naruto shouted as Gaara woke up with shock evident on his face, Shukaku's form falling away due to the medium being woken and beaten. The two of them found themselves on ground level, in a small clearing, with Gaara on the ground and Naruto walking slowly towards him.

"Don't come any closer!" Gaara shouted as Naruto's expression softened, the other boy was beaten. He could do no more harm.

"You want to know a secret Gaara?" Naruto spoke as Gaara continued to look on with fear. "...I was once just like you are... I was hated by everyone and I hated them in return. Sure, I didn't show it but I wanted to make them pay... to make it go away, the pain and loneliness." He continued softly, as Gaara looked on with shock.

_'This guy... who fights for everyone but himself... was like I am?'_ Gaara thought with no small measure of confusion.

"You wanna know what changed? I endured. I found a way to make people accept me and now I have people who I will die to protect..." He continued, his facial features hardening. "...and I will happily kill my emotions and destroy any who threaten them!" The blond exclaimed angrily as his pace continued.

"But why? Why would you go so far for someone other than yourself?" Gaara questioned, genuinely curious.

"They saved me from becoming **YOU**." Naruto spat out, as Gaara widened his eyes in shock. _'Did I really fail... because I chose hatred over love?'_ Gaara thought to himself as Naruto began to get close. Suddenly, Naruto collapsed to the ground with a thud.

"Chakra exhaustion... how weird." Naruto said with a small chuckle, having never experienced it before. Then he felt someone pull him up and found himself in Haku's lap, her radiant smile beaming down at him.

"That's enough Naruto-kun. He can't fight anymore." She spoke softly, as Naruto smiled up at her before turning towards the red-head.

"This is what makes me strong, Gaara." Naruto stated, as he closed his eyes. Gaara just looked up at the sky as Temari and Kankuro arrived to find a beaten Gaara, a resting Naruto, an alert Haku and a battle-ready Sasuke.

"Don't fight them..." Gaara said weakly. "...let's just leave." He continued, as Temari and Kankuro slowly obliged, scooped him up and left. Naruto coughed a little as Haku looked down at him.

"Hey, Haku-chan?" Naruto said, as the girl hummed in acknowledgement. "...remind me to replace this Haori..." He said jokingly as he fell asleep to the sound of her soft laughter.

**-****End-**

**I have so many plans for Shippuden, I just want to get there already. I still have 2 arcs until then too! Ugh, this is gonna take forever. Maybe I'll start shortening my chapters (detail-wise... not removing stuff and putting it on other chapters).**

**Since I'm awful with secrets, I'll give you guys a hint of what's to come. Let's just say Naruto's Sage Mode won't be of the normal variety. I put quite a bit of thought into his use of Senjutsu, and I was quite happy with my conclusion. **

**Anyway... Review, Favourite and/or Follow. **

**LiamMorg. Out.**

**Ja Ne!**


	16. The Death of a God

**I don't own Naruto... and it's up to the fans to decide whether or not that's a good thing.**

**I noticed some people weren't happy with how similar the Gaara fight was to canon, and I fully understand your issue. However, until Shippuden the overall plot will remain largely the same. The (arguably) biggest change pre-Shippuden will occur this arc though... so look forward to that!**

**I finally fixed the gender issues in chapter 1, due to finally realising what people meant when they said I kept switching it. I also changed the Akashio (Naruto's blade) from a Katana to a Chokutō (Same type as canon Sasuke).**

**Since people tend to bring this up, for all intents and purposes if I do not mention something that occurs in canon then just assume I left it the same. For example, I did not mention the events of the invasion last chapter but the entire thing was the same as canon.**

**Quote of the chapter/day: "The unjust death of a loved one can be ample reason for retribution, whether it be wise... or not." **

**Chapter 16: The Death of a God **

**-Last Chapter-**

"_Don't fight them..." Gaara said weakly. "...let's just leave." He continued, as Temari and Kankuro slowly obliged, scooped him up and left. Naruto coughed a little as Haku looked down at him._

"_Hey, Haku-chan?" Naruto said, as the girl hummed in acknowledgement. "...remind me to replace this Haori..." He said jokingly as he fell asleep to the sound of her soft laughter._

**-Start-**

Naruto awoke to find himself staring at a rather plain white ceiling. He then went through the possibilities and deduced he was in the hospital. This was followed by a groan of annoyance, he wasn't a fan of being in the hospital. His healing factor made it rarely necessary to be fully hospitalized, but then again he'd never suffered chakra exhaustion.

He looked down a little and noticed he was mostly undamaged, meaning most of the wounds he suffered must've been either internal or superficial. There was a bandage going from his waist to lower chest, so that was probably from being slammed into by Gaara when he broke through his mirror. He then noticed an arm was draped across his body and raised an eyebrow, he had no third arm which could only mean...

He turned to his side to see the sleeping form of his friend and lover, Haku. He had to suppress the urge to aww at her cuteness, since she looked so peaceful and innocent when she slept. The blond then turned away with a blush as he realised it may have been a little creepy to stare at her while she slept, but then again that was something couples apparently did.

Despite the fact he'd given it a lot of thought and deliberation, it still hadn't quite sunk in that she was _his_, and vice versa. It was such an uplifting feeling, to know that someone would be by your side for the unmeasured future; that someone you deeply cared for felt the same for you and would happily be with you. He brushed some hair out of her face and she hummed in sleepy appreciation. He chuckled softly at her reaction as he lay back and closed his eyes for a moment.

There was an indistinguishable feeling hanging in the air that something bad had happened, but he couldn't exactly explain it. Then his mind began to work on overload as he realised everything he'd overlooked, Konoha had faced a full scale invasion! His friends (bar Sasuke and Haku) could've easily died during the invasion, and what about Karin? He couldn't take it if his only clan relative died so soon after he found her.

He also thought about the village itself, what state had the invasion left it in? He could easily assume the village had survived triumphantly, since Haku would never look so peaceful otherwise and he certainly wouldn't be in the hospital. He sighed deeply, he'd have to see the Sandaime sometime soon. He didn't know why that thought made him feel cold, but it was there.

There were still positive aspects to be found though. If the invasion had only lasted a day, or maybe even less then there was little chance of the village being in complete disarray and that would also mean it was less likely that many people had died. If the invading force was so thoroughly dealt with in such a small amount of time then they obviously hadn't been well prepared.

If he thought about it though, it seemed the invasion centred around Gaara, so perhaps he'd significantly hindered their plan by stopping the boy. He certainly wouldn't want to face Shukaku at full strength, which the beast was definitely not at the time. He leaned up a little before letting out a pained grunt and falling back to the bed. It seemed he was very sore from the experience now that the event had passed; the adrenaline completely gone.

Despite their differences, Naruto hoped that Gaara was alright. The boy was quite clearly scarred almost irreparably as a child, it wasn't his fault that his life hadn't gone the way it was meant to... hell, the red-head probably had it worse than him with the whole 'unable to sleep' thing and his father's apparent assassination attempts.

He wanted to find his fellow Jinchūriki one day, to see how their lives had been and are now. He felt the Jinchūriki were his extended family; they all shared the same burden and had to live through difficulties that regular people wouldn't quite understand. He felt as though they could all understand each other, in a small way... though he hoped none of the others were quite as scarred as Gaara was. Fortunately the sleeping thing seemed to only apply to Jinchūriki of Shukaku.

"_**Well, look who decided to wake up." **_Kurama mumbled out from within Naruto's mind. The whiskered blond in question raised an eyebrow at the sudden break to the silence but quickly let a small smile cross his features as he relaxed himself

"_What can I say? Chakra exhaustion kinda sucks." _Naruto replied, making the fox grunt in affirmation.

"_**So I hear... not that I can experience such a thing." **_The fox retorted, making Naruto raise a brow at the reply. It brought a strange question to Naruto's mind.

"_You're a physical manifestation of chakra, so what WOULD happen if you used all of your chakra?"_ Naruto asked, genuinely curious. Unsurprisingly, the fox didn't really have an answer for such a question, since it was an impossibility... or as close to one as you could get.

"_**No idea. I assume I'd simply disperse, like when we 'die' along with our hosts... though Isobu is one of the few that have actually died. Hell, I think he died twice." **_The fox said, snorting as it finished its sentence. It was pretty embarrassing for the collective Bijū for any of them to fully die, at least in the subjugated state of being sealed they could utilize their hosts to wreak havoc or give their Jinchūriki access to the Bijū mode, which fully represents their image.

"_Hmm... food for thought I guess." _Naruto stated, as the fox simply agreed.

"_**I suppose so..." **_Kurama started, as it remained in silence for a little while. **_"...I must admit, I was impressed with how you handled my brother. You didn't even use my chakra other than for the summoning of that damn toad." _**He continued, growling as he remembered being flattened by Gamabunta prior to his sealing. Naruto smiled at the praise and stared up at the ceiling.

"_Thanks Kurama, that means a lot coming from an immortal chakra construct." _Naruto stated, half sincere and half joking. Kurama just snorted and cut the link before things became too 'touchy feely' for it's liking. Naruto huffed in a seemingly childish manner from the way the conversation was abruptly halted. Kurama really needed to become better at chatting.

Naruto looked over to Haku and leaned forward towards her – ignoring his body's attempts to caution him on the action – and lightly kissed her jaw, making her hum in satisfaction. He grinned from the reaction, before nibbling on her earlobe slightly. She began to stir at this as he released her and allowed her to turn a little before coming to terms with her current position. She awoke to find Naruto lovingly staring at her, making her blush a little as she smiled tiredly at him.

"You know... some people would find it weird if you were taking advantage of me in my sleep." Haku said playfully, as Naruto stuck out his tongue at her with a smirk. The girl just rolled her eyes a little as she leaned into him, as her expression turned into a frown. Naruto raised an eyebrow before pecking her on the forehead and looked into her eyes.

"Something wrong?" He asked softly to which she smiled slightly, though never quite losing the air of sadness around her. Naruto began to grow concerned at the action and lightly pushed her chin up to lock their eyes as he gave her a hardened stare. She sighed sadly as she closed her eyes.

"There's nothing wrong with me but..." She started, biting her lip and steeling her resolve. "...there's something you need to know." The girl continued, as Naruto's expression turned serious and he waited patiently for her to ready her answer.

"The... Sandaime is... dead." Haku stated lowly, not meeting his gaze but instantly noting that he dropped his hands from where they were. He was uncharacteristically quiet for the next few moments until she finally brought herself to look at him again. He seemed... neutral, but it was far too easy for her to see the obvious grief behind his eyes.

"I... I see." He said quietly, his voice cracking a little as he finished the sentence. Haku noticed he was fiercely gripping the sheets on the bed with his hands; his knuckles going white from exertion. Haku didn't really know what to do in this situation, so she did the first thing that came to mind: hug the boy. He stiffened at the contact, but he quickly eased into it and released the bed to tightly wrap his arms around his lover.

"He was such a good man... why did he need to die?!" Naruto stated sadly, his anger releasing near the end as Haku just comfortingly rubbed his back. She just wanted to ease his suffering, knowing somewhat arrogantly that she was the best suited for the task. It was one of the main reasons she had stayed through the night, so he could hear from her.

"I can't answer that... but it was Orochimaru that killed him..." She stated, as Naruto growled angrily, releasing a noticeable level of KI at the mention of the man. She could tell that he now loathed the man if he ever didn't before.

"I'll skin that snake." Naruto stated with venom dripping from his tone. Haku was a little concerned that he may create some sort of needless and illogical vendetta against the traitorous Sannin, since there was no way he could currently beat the man.

"Please, don't fixate yourself on revenge... you said yourself that hatred leads nowhere... I'm here for you." Haku encouraged him, assuring that she'd stay by his side. He suddenly realised how he was acting and sighed lowly, it wouldn't bring the old man back to kill the snake... but that didn't mean he wouldn't take a chance if he was presented one.

"You're right Haku-chan... I'm sorry..." Naruto said, as he pulled back from their embrace. "...and I'm glad I'll have you to keep me sane." He continued as he smiled warmly at her. He wasn't exactly done grieving but he'd try and remember the Sandaime as he lived, rather than how he died. She smiled back at him as she leaned in and kissed him lightly.

He wasn't quite content with it though, and placed his hand on the back of her head and kept their lips locked with further passion. Haku moaned softly from the action as she ran a hand through his hair, making him smile playfully.

Unfortunately for the two lovers, their little moment was cut short by the door swinging open at a contained pace. As it fully opened Sasuke walked in a few feet before taking in the sight of his teammates melding their faces together and he proceeded to blink a few times before a blush broke out across his features and he turned away, coughing loudly. Haku pulled back quickly and looked at Sasuke with an embarrassed blush adorning her face as she leapt from the bed and stood awkwardly while Naruto just ruffled his already messed up hair (thanks to a certain Yuki) with the expression someone caught in the middle of a prank.

"Uh... hi?" Naruto said light heartedly as Sasuke just snorted a small laugh and turned back to the two of them. Then his blush faded as he smiled lightly at the two of them, leaning against the door frame with his arms crossed.

"So, you two finally decided to do something did you?" Sasuke stated knowingly as Haku's blush deepened as she found the ground to be rather interesting. Naruto just laughed at how nervous she was acting due to being caught in their intimate action.

"Yeah yeah, shut it ducky..." Naruto said with a teasing smirk that made Sasuke fume. "...relationships take time you know!" he continued with a little annoyance that apparently his feeling had been common knowledge to everyone but him. Sasuke just snorted before looking out the window.

"Hn... so, do you know about... uh..." Sasuke said, unsure how to approach his best friend about the death of a man he obviously held dear. Naruto lowered his head and his expression turned a little forlorn as he nodded. "...right... well if it means anything, I'm here for you." Sasuke continued a little awkwardly, not having dealt with something like this since the Uchiha Massacre.

"Thank you..." Naruto said with a warm smile as he turned to rise from his bed. He got halfway up before growling and holding his chest painfully, dropping back to the bed with a small whimper. "...ugh... being injured sucks." The blond stated with clear irritation. Haku rolled her eyes at his impatient attitude and walked over to slowly help him up. He smiled at her appreciatively.

"There will be a large funeral later today atop the Hokage Tower, so we'll all need to find something black." Sasuke said in a bored tone. Naruto nodded as he went and collected jacket and mesh shirt from a nearby seat and placed them on slowly. He looked over to his damaged Haori and sighed, so much for that. Regardless he still took it in case he could have it repaired.

"Are you even allowed to leave?" Haku asked inquisitively. To her not-so-surprise, Naruto just shrugged and started walking out of the room.

"Don't know, don't care... I hate hospitals and I'm completely fi-" The blond replied, before a jolt of pain shot through his lower torso making him noticeably cringe. Haku just looked on worriedly as he waved her off. "...I'm fine, I'll take things slow." He continued, making Haku eye him attentively before turning to face forward.

"You'd better, or I'll have to discipline you." Haku said playfully, as Sasuke pretended to throw up. Naruto raised an eyebrow amusedly at both the girl's attitude and Sasuke's obvious discomfort being in this situation.

"I'd like to see you try, Haku-chan~" Naruto chirped out, trying his hardest to make Sasuke as uncomfortable as possible. Sasuke was nearly sick for real that time as he blanched. Seeing what he was doing, Haku smiled deviously and walked over to the blond before giving him another kiss.

"Alright that's it! I'm leaving!" Sasuke stated, as he turned and walked a different route out of the hospital. Once he was out of sight, Naruto burst out laughing despite his body's obvious protests against the action. Haku was also laughing uncontrollably in a way that somehow made Naruto find her even more attractive.

"Oh, that was worth it." She said between bouts of laughter, to which Naruto nodded fervently. It was going to be very amusing to make Sasuke uncomfortable in future.

"You're right, that was great." Naruto stated, with a smile that threatened to break his face. Naruto grabbed Haku's hand and interlaced their fingers as they resumed their walk. They continued their walk until they spotted Team 10 along with Sakura and Karin in a small food stand. Naruto inwardly sighed in relief that Karin was seemingly fine after the invasion, not that he was unconcerned with his fellow rookies... she just had more importance in his mind, so to speak. It wasn't easy to weigh one life against another, but everyone subconsciously did so.

"Glad to see you're all alright." Naruto stated as he approached the group. Everyone turned to see him and Haku walking together, holding hands with varying expressions. There were obvious signs of surprise, but Ino and Sakura found the sight to be rather romantic. Karin was subconsciously glaring at Haku, since she hadn't met the girl yet... not officially anyway.

"Well isn't this a surprise!" Ino chirped as the two approached. Naruto mentally berated himself for not realising that Ino was bound to take immediate notice of their close action, since she was the gossip queen of their graduating class.

"Definitely..." Sakura added as she studied the couple closely. "...so, how did you two get together... and when? Got any details?" She prodded shamelessly as the majority of the males sweat-dropped at the over interested attitude. Naruto just rubbed the back of his head nervously at the attention.

"It's... a long story." The blond replied, as Haku giggled slightly. It wasn't really that long a story, but Naruto obviously wasn't interested in sharing.

"Oh really Naruto-kun? Don't tell me your embarrassed about talking about us?" The ice wielder teased playfully. Naruto paled a little as he could see that this wouldn't end well for him. Shikamaru and Chōji smirked at the blond's position.

"Looks like you've been roped down by a troublesome girl Naruto... I feel your pain." Shikamaru stated, making Naruto sweat-drop at him. Did he think everything was troublesome.

"Uh... I did agree to this relationship you know." Naruto stated with a blank face as Shikamaru shrugged absently.

"You'll come to realise how troublesome it is though." He retorted, as Naruto face-palmed at the impossible attitude the lazy genius had.

"You think I'm troublesome Shikamaru?" Haku asked devilishly, as Shikamaru froze a little while the rest of the people present all smiled at the way she was pressing him.

"Yeah Shikamaru, are you saying Haku isn't worth the trouble?" Sakura added, trying to further add to just how screwed Shikamaru was. He sighed in a defeated tone as he slumped his shoulders.

"Damn, I'm screwed now... how troublesome." He muttered, making Naruto laugh at his friend's expense. He then released Haku's hand and wrapped an arm around her shoulder.

"Alright Haku-chan, no need to torture him." Naruto chided lightly. Haku just smiled at him before sitting down near Karin. Naruto also sat down by Shikamaru as the group all calmed down a little.

"So Nii-san, got a girlfriend have you?" Karin asked intensely. Naruto gulped at her tone as he nodded slowly. "...why didn't you tell me?" She added sweetly, but Naruto could see the danger laced with the question.

"Uh... because... we were waiting for the Chūnin exams to end to properly explore the relationship, since it would've gotten in the way." Naruto replied, making Karin's expression harden for a moment before she relented with a smile.

"Works for me." She stated, as Haku turned to Naruto with a chilly smile.

"Just an obstacle am I?" Haku asked dangerously, as all chatter stopped as Naruto paled appropriately before breaking down into anime tears.

"Why must you torture me so?" The blond asked childishly, as Haku giggled and gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

"Oh, I'm just kidding Naruto-kun." She said warmly, as Naruto pouted slightly, muttering something along the lines of 'well it wasn't funny'. Everyone else present smiled at the way the two acted around each other, it seemed they were very comfortable with the other.

"If only Sasuke-kun would be like that with me..." Ino said sadly. Sakura just scoffed at the platinum blond girl. Ino then turned a glare over to her. "...what's so ridiculous about me winning Sasuke-kun over?" She asked heatedly.

"Nothing, but I realised he doesn't really appreciate us fawning over him." The pinkette stated casually, making Ino drop her jaw. Sakura was acting more mature in regards to Sasuke than she'd ever seen. _'Is she right? Maybe I am going about it wrong...'_ Ino thought to herself carefully, re-evaluating her love life.

Then the same Uchiha entered their little gathering, with a slight glare directed at Haku and Naruto. Everyone then looked at him with confused expressions due to the action.

"Have those two stopped acting all lovey-dovey yet?" Sasuke asked cautiously. Everyone tilted their heads confusedly, which he took as a yes before sitting beside Naruto and Shikamaru. Naruto then had a thought.

"Since I haven't officially introduced you... Haku-chan, Sasuke, this is Karin-chan, my sister. Karin these are my teammates Haku and Sasuke." Naruto stated, making Haku smile over at Karin while Sasuke was confused about the way he referred to her, but he assumed they'd taken a somewhat surrogate sibling relationship.

"Nice to officially meet you Karin." Haku said warmly as Sasuke grunted in agreement, though he couldn't exactly hide the small smile that was plastered over his face. _'She's... kinda cute.'_ He thought to himself absently, before shaking his head slightly.

"Likewise... but what do you mean 'officially'?" Karin said, curious about the way Haku phrased the statement.

"Well we technically met in the Forest of Death, but you you didn't see my or Sasuke's face." Haku said casually, making Karin's mind work a little before a bulb shot to life.

"Oh! You were the ones with Nii-san, the two in the masks!" Karin exclaimed, as the two nodded. Sakura looked on inquisitively at the proclamation.

"Masks?" Sakura asked with confusion. In a weird level of synchronisation the three members of Team 7 all pulled their masks out and placed them on their faces.

"We thought masks would be a nice team thing... Haku-chan's idea of course, since she used to wear a mask before we met." Naruto stated, as Sakura nodded in understanding. She did feel a little left out though, since they were acting as though they were a team the entire time while she was... just there. Noticing her expression, Naruto took off his mask.

"Sakura, you're still a part of the team, even if it's gotten a little complicated... you can get a mask too if you like." He said comfortingly, as she looked at his expression that was completely devoid of deception before smiling and nodding.

"So, what did you guys do during the invasion?" Sasuke asked while leaning on his hands a little. Everyone present just sighed a little.

"Not much really, just assisted the various Jōnin." Shikamaru stated lazily as most of them nodded. Naruto looked over at Karin who shrunk a little under his gaze.

"I didn't do anything... because I'm not a Genin of the village I was restricted from any form of combat." She said in an embarrassed tone. Naruto just smiled over at her and shook his head.

"No need to be embarrassed Karin-chan, if you weren't allowed to fight that's fine... besides, I'd hate to lose my only family so soon." Naruto stated warmly, as his tone turned soft near the end. Karin smiled appreciatively towards him as they fell into silence.

"Well... I'm gonna head out and prepare for the funeral later." Shikamaru said, as everyone began filing out. Naruto did the same, bidding farewell to his friends and lover. He noticed Karin was tagging along with him, as he shot her a questioning look.

"Need something Karin-chan?" Naruto asked calmly, as she huffed a little and crossed her arms. Naruto raised an eyebrow but continued to wait in silence as they walked.

"Can't I just walk with my Nii-san?" Karin retorted as Naruto shot her a disbelieving stare. She sighed slightly as she turned away from him "...fine! I was wondering... is Sasuke... uh... seeing anyone?" She asked, as Naruto stopped walking and stood expressionless for a few moments before he dropped his jaw.

"You... like Sasuke?" Naruto asked, as she nodded slightly. "...okay. Then no, he isn't seeing anyone." He continued, as she smiled. Honestly he didn't really care if she liked Sasuke, so long as she wasn't going to be a fan girl about it.

"Awesome!" She exclaimed as she jumped up a little. Naruto then held up his hand to stop her actions. She looked at him curiously as his facial expression became neutral.

"I hope you aren't basing this off looks... relationships don't work that way. Get to know him first, then you'll have my complete support if you decide to follow up on this." Naruto stated with a tone that didn't give her room for debate. She thought about it for a moment before she nodded and remained quiet for a few minutes as they continued to walk.

"Thanks for the advice Nii-san but... how do I get to know him?" She asked curiously. Naruto blinked a little, thinking back on his own relationship. Honestly the fact that Haku's past was so relevant early on made it easier to get to know her.

"Well, take an interest... but don't bother asking about his parents or anything since it'll probably bum him out. Personality is more important than past anyway, since it's their personality you'll have to deal with on daily basis..." The whiskered boy said, as Karin listened attentively "...for example, Haku-chan is always warm and easy to talk to, I feel comfortable around her... and it's more important than you'd think." He finished, as his sister figure nodded and closed her eyes.

"I see what you mean, thanks for helping me out with this." She said with a small smile. Naruto waved his hand at her dismissively.

"What are siblings for?" Naruto said somewhat jokingly. "...just try not to give Sasuke too much control, or he may restart his clan sooner than expected!" He said with a loud laugh as Karin went bright red – a shade that matched her hair – and stomped off.

"Hey, I was kidding! Karin-chan!"

**-Later That Day – Naruto's Apartment -**

Naruto was sitting in his home, looking at a picture of a young version of himself with the Sandaime. They were out for a small festival where the elderly Hokage spent the whole day with him, generally having fun. The sight brought a smile to the blond's face, an image of his better years as a child. He noticed the image was beginning to grow wet and realised he was crying, so he wiped his eyes and put the picture down.

He was wearing clothes a lot more appropriate for a funeral, a full black outfit. Though his regular one was mostly black, this one did not feature any obvious orange insides, blue trousers or mesh shirts. It was a moody outfit for a moody event. Wearing something different made him realise how often he wore his fingerless gloves, he'd have to remember to take them off more.

He looked in the mirror and couldn't help but notice how long his hair had grown, since he wasn't really paying attention to it all this time. Thanks to his healthy diet and genes, his body produced hair at a rather fast rate which meant his hair now reached his lower neck. His hair also now had long bangs framing the majority of his face and the sides of his hair went down to the bottom of his head.. _'Geez, I look like the Yondaime...' _Naruto mentally noted. He was wondering how he didn't notice the golden blond hair that had entered his vision range, but assumed it happened so gradually he just took no notice.

Despite the fact it had no obvious style going for it, Naruto had to admit he kinda liked having longer hair. It was better than having short but very spiky hair because it made him look younger for some reason, and he liked appearing a little more mature. Still, he'd need to get some sort of order going, or he'd start to look like Madara Uchiha... though that man pulled off the long, spiky hair look very well.

He also noticed his significantly more mature looking face. Gone was the Naruto who looked like a midget with a very noticeable level of baby fat, now he had a very small amount of it and was pretty tall for his age, standing at about 5 foot and 1 inch tall. He'd been a little taller than Haku for a while now, by an inch or two. His physique was beginning to show decent levels of strength, but it wasn't really noticeable muscle since he still needed the flexibility and speed that came with a lithe body.

He sighed to himself as he went to pick up his Hitai-ate. He looked over the symbol of Konoha before walking over to the window and staring up at the Hokage Mountain. _'Each of them gave their lives for the village and upheld the will of fire until their final breath... I will honour their sacrifice and inherit their will... I will protect the village they fought so hard for.'_ Naruto thought to himself with determination. He then sighed and left his apartment to go catch up with his team, but not before glancing over at his mother's blade.

**-With Team 7-**

Naruto was leaning against a wall in the same street/alley that Konohamaru had run into Kankuro. He was seemingly always the first one out these days, he really needed to get some sort of hobby other than training. Still, with the goals he had for his life he needed to be vigilant in his training. How else could he become Hokage? Though his dream of being Godaime died with the Sandaime, since they would find a replacement way before the blond was ready to take the role – in terms of age, intelligence and skill.

He then sensed a nearing presence with sensory and opened his eyes to see both Sasuke and Haku arriving at once. He pushed himself off the wall and stood silently, his arms behind his back in an unnecessarily professional manner. The two walked up to him and stopped briefly before they all walked in tandem and silence.

They eventually arrived at the Hokage Tower, where a large number of Shinobi of varying rank were all gathered in a formal way. The two advisers of the Hokage – an old man and woman – were stood in front of an image of the Sandaime and many others.

"We are gathered here today not only to remember the Sandaime Hokage, but also all the others who died so that the village may survive." The male said professionally. The ceremony was mostly drowned out by Naruto's thoughts and the chattering of rain, but it passed quickly enough.

Haku looked over at Naruto who was wearing a calm face, standing beside a mourning Konohamaru. For the most part it would've been the assumption of anyone watching that the rain was covering his face, but she could tell that he was silently weeping for the dead Hokage. It was somewhat of a rule for a Shinobi not to show emotion, and Naruto was aware of that. As such, he was using the rain to mask his tears and his will to bite down any noises that threatened to escape him.

In a subtle motion from his side, she gave his hand a reassuring squeeze and looked at him with a small smile. He looked at her and gave a weak smile in response, finding it difficult to put any warmth into it. Noticing this, she stood a little closer to him to show that she was there for him.

Everyone then began moving one by one towards the small shrine that was adorned with the picture of the Sandaime and a few others, placing flowers down in front of the Hokage's smiling image. Naruto began to flash back to all the times that he and the man had simply talked or spent the day together, as a mere man and someone who he considered family. His calm face began to crack as he got closer and closer towards the image of the man until he was finally in front of it.

With a strangled sob he shakily placed a flower in front of the old man and walked away. _'Never again... never again will I lose someone precious to me... I will become stronger for them... and for her...'_ Naruto thought sadly, but with a fire that burned behind his otherwise cold eyes.

He walked back to his position in the line as the ceremony drew to a close. The rain eventually began to die out, unfortunately for Naruto it revealed that his face was not getting any drier. The other rookies began to notice his silent trauma and frowned in shared sadness; most of them knowing of his connection to the elderly Hokage.

"Are you alright?" Haku asked quietly and softly, as Naruto gained a somber smile as he lowered his head to the ground before closing his eyes and running a sleeve across his face.

"No..." The blond breathed out almost lifelessly, making Haku's expression sadden appropriately until Naruto looked at her with a bit more warmth than he had throughout the whole ceremony. "...but I know he died to protect us all, and I refuse to wallow in self pity over a man who died with a smile on his face... it would betray his memory." He continued, a small but genuine smile across his face. He'd heard that the Sandaime died smiling and it brought him a great deal of happiness.

This brought a smile to Haku's face, knowing that Naruto wouldn't just continue to mourn and wallow in his grief. It wouldn't do anyone any good for him to grieve endlessly, nor would it show a very Shinobi-like attitude. Iruka – who had been comforting Konohamaru throughout the ceremony – smiled also.

"That's a very wise statement Naruto..." Iruka stated warmly, as Naruto turned to the man with his smile still present.

"I appreciate that, Iruka-sensei." Naruto said softly. The ceremony went in a breeze from then on, and eventually everyone filed out other than Team 7 and a few others. As the majority of the team waited to leave, Naruto walked up to the picture once more before placing his palms together, before opening them and placing something in front of the Sandaime's picture.

As he walked away nobody noticed the small crystal in the shape of the symbol of Konoha.

Naruto approached Haku, Sasuke and Kakashi with a small smile present on his face. They all looked at him, silently weighing his attitude as he stopped before them. He raised an eyebrow at their expressions, which were all rather uncomfortable ones.

"I won't bite Dattebayo." Naruto said with a little irritation, snapping them all out of their reverie. Upon realising what he'd said, he blushed in embarrassment and looked away. "...nobody say a word." He continued, as they grinned at him slightly. He huffed in annoyance as he looked back at them.

"Sasuke, can I talk to you somewhere private? Haku-chan I'd appreciate if you came along too." Naruto said, as Sasuke shrugged disinterestedly. It wasn't like he had anything special to do. Haku would obviously make an effort to be there for Naruto, so she had no objection.

"Hn." Sasuke said, as he took off at a slow pace. Naruto and Haku then walked over to him as the pace increased to be more normal. Kakashi began to cry humorously that his students hadn't said a word to him before leaving. Little did everyone know, two shadowy figures were on the outskirts of the village...

...And one of them was coming home for the first time in a while.

**-The Uchiha Compound-**

After a short walk through the village, the trio arrived at the Uchiha compound, which was honestly much too large for Sasuke to be using. Alas, it didn't seem to matter to the village. They all entered the small house that Sasuke was using as his own – considering he had quite a few to choose from – before Sasuke offered them a seat.

"Make yourselves at home, I guess." Sasuke said disinterestedly, since he wasn't really used to having company over to his home due to his old brooding attitude turning him into somewhat of an isolationist. Haku complied but Naruto stayed standing, to the Uchiha's confusion.

"I think I should stand for this..." Naruto stated calmly, as Sasuke shrugged and sat down. "...you remember that I mentioned the word 'Jinchūriki' during the preliminaries?" He continued, as Haku realised why he had asked her to come along. He probably wanted a second opinion in case it brought a negative reaction from the Raven haired boy.

"Yeah, you said you'd explain what it was so I left it alone." Sasuke said, his hand in a thinking pose against his chin. He'd been wondering what exactly Naruto meant for a while now, but with the finals and whatnot he didn't have time to ask.

"Long story short, Jinchūriki are demon containers... remember what Gaara transformed into?" Naruto said, as Sasuke's mind rolled back to the titanic mass of sand that was Shukaku; the Ichibi. He shivered slightly at the memory, it was quite a fearsome creature.

"Yeah I remember... are you saying that thing was _inside him_?" Sasuke asked, genuinely creeped out by the thought of such a thing. Naruto nodded and crossed his arms, his eyes closed as he thought through his next words.

"So to speak, yes... but the creature that is within Gaara is known as Shukaku, the Ichibi of the Bijū. The Bijū are composed entirely of chakra, so they can be sealed with powerful Fūinjutsu techniques." Naruto stated sagely, as Sasuke nodded.

"So, these Bijū are sealed within a person and then take up like... no space at all?" Sasuke asked, curious as to how such a thing was possible. Naruto actually couldn't answer that, he had no idea 'where' Kurama resided, though he assumed it was entirely stored within his seal.

"In theory... now, you remember the Kyūbi?" Naruto asked, as Sasuke nodded instantly. "...the Kyūbi is the strongest of the collective Bijū and as such, cannot die since chakra cannot be killed." He continued, as the wheels turned in Sasuke's head.

"Are you saying, the Kyūbi was sealed? Like that... Shukaku thing was in Gaara?" Sasuke asked, as Naruto nodded before sighing and unzipping his jacket. Sasuke raised an eyebrow at the action before Naruto raised his mesh shirt and a very complex sealing matrix appeared on the blond's stomach.

"I am the Kyūbi Jinchūriki, created by the Yondaime Hokage." Naruto said, though he had no idea how correct he was when he stated he was created by the Yondaime. Sasuke just dropped his jaw before attempting to speak a few times. Haku watched him closely for signs of fear, but couldn't find any obvious signs.

"You... house the Kyūbi?" Sasuke said sceptically, as Naruto nodded casually. "...prove it." He continued, as a small smirk appeared over his face. Naruto ran a hand through his hair with a loud accompanying sigh before red chakra blast out from around him, his features turning feral and fox-like.

"**Satisfied?" **Naruto said, making an effort to use Kurama's chakra to turn his voice demonic to improve the believability. Sasuke activated his **Sharingan** and stared at the red chakra closely, before deactivating it with a slight shiver.

"Well, it's definitely not your chakra... you're far too easy going to have chakra that tainted." Sasuke stated as Naruto smirked and deactivated his transformation. Haku sighed slightly at the rather tame reaction from Sasuke.

"So, you aren't worried?" Naruto asked tentatively. Sasuke to Naruto's surprise just chuckled a little at the question.

"I heard Madara Uchiha subjugated the Kyūbi with a glance from his **Sharingan**, so I have no reason to worried." Sasuke stated jokingly. Naruto just scoffed at the false arrogance, there was no way he'd subjugate Kurama without a **Mangekyō Sharingan** at least. While he knew little about the evolution of the Uchiha Dojutsu, he heard passing mentions of it during his research.

"I wouldn't say that to the Kyūbi if I was you, he'd probably eat you alive... he really dislikes the Uchiha clan because Madara did that." Naruto said. Sasuke then paused and stared at Naruto concernedly.

"You... talk to it?" The Uchiha asked, to which Naruto shrugged, uncaring. "...only Naruto could be so crazy." Sasuke said, a small laugh escaping him. Naruto just laughed along with him, while Haku just lay back a little.

"_**You know, you could probably bring those two into your mindscape." **_Kurama stated with sheer boredom, as Naruto raised an eyebrow in a mixture of curiosity and confusion.

"_That's interesting... but why?"_ Naruto asked quizzically. Kurama just snorted out some form of retort while Naruto waited patiently.

"_**Fine! I want to scare the Uchiha... and the Vixen interests me." **_Kurama conceded as Naruto smirked slightly, why not?

"_Can I tell them your name?"_ Naruto asked, as the fox fell silent for a few moments to ponder the issue.

"_**Alright, but no more others. Understood?"**_ The fox stated, as Naruto nodded mockingly. Haku and Sasuke sweat-dropped at the sight of Naruto making strange gestures to himself, clearly having forgotten about them.

"_Cool, so how do I take them in my mindscape?" _Naruto asked.

"_**Try placing a palm on their heads, while they clear their mind. That should be enough for me to rope their subconscious into your own."**_ Kurama stated, as Naruto furrowed his brows. That didn't exactly sounds functional, but he decided not to question it.

"Haku-chan, Sasuke... come here for a second." Naruto said, making them both jump slightly since they had been watching the previously zoned-out boy for a few minutes.

"Uh... OK?" Sasuke said with confusion in his tone while Haku just walked straight over. Naruto then placed his palm on their foreheads and closed his eyes.

"Close your eyes and clear your minds." Naruto ordered, as the two shrugged and complied. They then felt a strange sensation, almost like their heads were moving without their bodies.

**-Naruto's Mindscape-**

The two of them opened their eyes to find themselves inside a large dark and damp sewer structure, with a large gate in the centre of the room. It was a strange sight, as they were nowhere near anything of this description a minute ago.

"Where are we?" Sasuke asked impatiently. Haku continued to look around as Naruto could be seen near one of the bars of the gate. Sasuke and Haku instantly stiffened when a loud growling sound could be heard behind the bars.

"**So my container finally brought me a meal... excellent..." **A loud voice boomed out from the darkness of the cage. Naruto smiled devilishly as his two guests began to gain fearful looks. Then a shadow loomed through the bars as two distinctly red eyes, each slit were visible through the same bars.

"Go ahead Kyūbi, have fun." Naruto said maliciously, as Haku and Sasuke both froze in fright. Was Naruto truly offering them as snacks to the Kyūbi? To their surprise and relief, the fox growled in disappointment and lay down.

"**It's no fun when they just freeze up..."** The fox stated as it closed its eyes. Naruto just rolled his eyes at the titanic being and walked towards his now unamused friends.

"Sorry, couldn't resist scaring you... welcome to my mindscape!" Naruto said exuberantly. Haku and Sasuke looked at him like he'd gone insane, since he was claiming they'd just entered the mind of another person.

"I'm sorry... say again now?" Haku squeaked out, as Naruto chuckled.

"You heard... anyway, I'd like to introduce the Kyūbi, or as he is really called: Kurama!" Naruto shouted, as the fox cracked open an eyelid and stared at him. Sasuke and Haku were rather surprised the fox had a name, but decided to chalk it down for another strange occurrence that centred around Naruto.

"**Yeah yeah, now bow in fear mortals!" **The titanic fox beckoned, as nothing happened. Naruto just stood with a disapproving stare, an eyebrow raised appropriately at the fox's arrogance.

"It didn't work the first time, it won't work now furball." Naruto called out to the fox, who instantly jumped up and slammed against the bars of its cage.

"**Stop calling me that!" **Kurama roared, making Naruto laugh at his expense. Haku and Sasuke just shook their heads, no longer caring that Naruto was so strange. If he could talk to the Kyūbi like he was then he was clearly insane.

"I feel sorry for you, having to date this psycho." Sasuke muttered to Haku who actually nodded slightly.

"What did I get myself into..." She mused in a light hearted manner. Naruto just face-faulted as his expression became a little annoyed.

"No fair guys." Naruto muttered, as the two of them chuckled slightly. Sasuke then walked closer to the bars and peered at the fox, finding it a lot less threatening than he was lead to believe.

"Eh, he doesn't seem so fearsome." Sasuke said, as a claw instantly came through the bars and almost impaling him, causing Sasuke to scream in a very feminine way with wide, white eyes. Naruto and Haku instantly broke down laughing at the very girly action that Sasuke just performed as the Uchiha scowled.

"**Ha! Take that Madara, you bastard!" **Kurama roared, proud of himself for reducing the mighty Uchiha clan to a shrieking girl.

"Well, as fun as it is to see Sasuke screaming like a little girl, could you try not to give him a heart attack?" Naruto admonished lightly, as Kurama snorted at him slightly.

"**Fine... still worth it."** The fox said before retreating further into its cage. Naruto smiled and shook his head at the fox's antics as Sasuke walked over, with a mixture of shock and disapproval written across his features.

"I take it back, Kurama's an asshole." Sasuke sneered, as Naruto laughed at his position. Haku sighed and pushed Naruto lightly.

"No need to be mean, now can we leave? This place is damp..." She said, trailing off at the end. Naruto rolled his eyes at her phrasing before crossing his arms.

"You're a **Suiton** user Haku-chan..." Naruto said with a plain face, making the girl's mind work quickly before she blushed and turned away.

"S-shut up!" Haku barked out in a rather unattractive manner while Naruto just laughed at being able to show her up so easily.

"OK, OK... Kurama! We're leaving!" Naruto called out as he heard a snort of derision.

"**I don't care!"** The fox roared from the back of the cage while Naruto sweat-dropped at the unfriendly attitude. _'Geez, __he's so anti-social__...'_ Naruto thought. He then thought about leaving and the three humans present dissipated into nothingness.

"**Damn... now I'm bored..."**

**-In Reality-**

"So, what do you guys think of Kurama?" Naruto said teasingly, as Sasuke growled angrily while Haku just shrugged lightly.

"He's OK... I guess..." She said doubtfully. Naruto just smirked at his lovers attitude on the subject and wrapped his arm around her from behind playfully.

"Well, you better get used to him... there's two people in this body!" Naruto joked, as Haku somewhat paled knowing she was technically dating Naruto and some sort of creepy house guest.

"Like I said... I feel sorry for you Haku." Sasuke repeated. Haku somewhat leaned into Naruto's embrace as he raised an eyebrow at her forwardness with public affection. He simply shrugged before leaning down and giving her a quick kiss from an angle.

"I guess I'll have to put up with him won't I?" The Yuki survivor stated warmly, as she smiled back at Naruto. Sasuke's eyebrow twitched as he watched them acting far too intimate for his liking.

"If you guys are going to start this crap again then I'm gonna make you leave." He stated with irritation. Naruto frowned at his friends before remembering Karin's declaration, where a small smirk appeared on his face.

"Maybe you'll understand our feelings soon enough..." Naruto said cryptically. Sasuke and Haku raised an eyebrow at his words but Naruto refused to elaborate. Sasuke then decided to follow up on his threat.

"Whatever, just get out." Sasuke grunted out, as Naruto snickered before complying.

"Later Sasuke-_kun_!" Naruto chirped before running out, followed by a small fireball. Haku just sweat-dropped, looking over at Sasuke who was literally steaming out his ears. She decided she should leave as well before he exploded or something, and ran to catch up to Naruto while she gave the Raven haired boy a small wave.

"I hate everything." Sasuke growled out as he walked off further into his home, though a small smile did break free across his face.

**-****With Naruto and Haku-**

After avoiding possible castration from the hands of one Sasuke Uchiha, Naruto was walking home – accompanied by his very lovely friend and lover Haku. He was going to do a little training, and thought it would be a nice idea to invite the girl. After nearly a month apart he didn't want to spend much time away from her.

"So what'll you be training Naruto-kun?" Haku asked curiously. Naruto brought a hand up to his chin as his eyes wandered to the top corner of their sockets aimlessly before he dropped his arm and the cerulean orbs took their usual centred location.

"I think I'll try something a little new today." He said cryptically. Haku sighed at his way of keeping secrets to annoy people and amuse himself, she would need to find a way to stop him doing that. If only there was something a girl could use to threaten her lover with.

"Your surprises are really irritating, you know that right?" Haku stated plainly, as Naruto ruffled the back of his head while chuckling with embarrassment.

"Surprises are fun! They make everything more interesting!" Naruto stated passionately, as Haku rolled her eyes playfully at him. Naruto got the idea that this would spell trouble for him, and paled appropriately.

"If you say so." She said absently, as they reached his home. Naruto unlocked the door and walked in quickly, grabbing an item before placing some sort of wrapping over it and walking to get some other equipment and to change into his Shinobi gear while Haku waited, doing a bit of light reading.

"You need to change as well right?" Naruto queried, as the girl realised she was still clothed in her funeral clothing. She then nodded with a small blush as she had completely forgotten about that little detail. "...well, we best get a move on then." He continued with a sly smirk.

**-Training Ground-**

Naruto and Haku arrived at an unlabeled training ground after Haku got her Shinobi gear and clothing, finding it to have a few dummies along with a good size and access to water. It seemed very varied, so they assumed it was for higher level training. Haku watched him carefully to see what exactly it was that he'd brought with him.

Seeing her eyeing him, Naruto let a beguiling smirk emerge on his face. He then dropped the wrapping slowly and enticingly from the item to reveal a scabbard, with the handle of a blade at the end. It had a brown strap that allowed the blade to be situated over the shoulder, with two black lines running along the edges of the strap. Naruto promptly placed it over his right shoulder and tightened it so it wouldn't fall off.

"You have a sword?" Haku asked, curious how this had never come up. Naruto smirked as his right arm reached up slowly, grabbing the handle of his blade before leaning forward a little and pulling it quickly out of the scabbard to reveal the elegant design of the **Akashio**.

"I guess you could say that..." Naruto said, as he examined his blade once more for fun. Haku quickly came over and had to admit, the blade was very well designed. It was quite clearly a heavily personal design, meaning that the blade itself was probably very good as well, to ensure the unique design wasn't wasted by the blade breaking or otherwise falling out of use.

"It's beautiful, where'd you get it?" Haku asked quietly, still looking over the blade. Naruto ran his hand across it with a slight smirk.

"It belonged to my Kaa-san... it's called the **Akashio**." Naruto said with a prideful tone. Haku smiled at the warmth he showed for his mother's weapon, despite the fact he'd never even met the woman.

"Red Tide... seems appropriate..." Haku mused as she stood back a little and shot Naruto an inquisitive gaze. "...can you even use that?" She continued, as Naruto took a very serious expression for a moment.

"Nope!" The blond replied, as his expression turned embarrassed. Haku face-faulted before regaining her composure with a sigh. "...but, every journey begins with a single step right?" He continued, a confident smile on his face. Haku nodded before starting to walk over to the more water-rich part of the training ground.

"Just try not to cut yourself!" She shouted over mockingly. Naruto scowled at the lack of faith before looking down at the blade. _'How hard could it be? It's just a big Kunai.' _Naruto thought to himself, sceptical over how difficult swordplay could really be. He took a few swings with the blade to test the weight and to get a feel for it, finding it a bit sluggish.

"Hmm... the weight feels good, but it just feels... off..." Naruto mused to himself. "...I probably just need to get some sort of style down, I hear Kenjutsu is largely about footwork and speed." He continued, as he held up a crossed hand sign, making two clones poof into existence. _'Weird, the sword didn't replicate.'_ Naruto thought to himself confusedly. He summoned a normal clone and found the sword did replicate, so he had no idea why that was happening.

"Eh... whatever." Naruto said, as one clone got into a defensive stance in front of him while the other stood back a little and watched carefully. His plan was to use the defensive clone to test his precision and speed, while the other clone watched carefully for any glaring issues with his stance.

For the first few moments, Naruto fiddled with the way he held the blade, trying to find something that seemed remotely natural to him. He noticed the blade wasn't completely alien, and did seem correct in his hands. Still, the obvious issue in having no training in its usage was detrimental to the whole thing.

Fortunately, the handle was long enough to be grabbed with both hands should the user decide to use it as such so Naruto was able to experiment a little in that regard. It was definitely easier when wielded in both hands, but it sacrificed a lot of the mobility and spontaneity that came from wielding it with just one, since the angles he could swing it at were limited considerably with both arms in the way.

He decided for the time being to try it with just one arm and dashed towards his clone, who lowered his stance a little in preparation. Naruto quickly manoeuvred his arm to go across his body in a crescent shape before swinging the blade in a horizontal arc, to which the clone ducked under with little effort. He then stabbed the blade forward, attempting to skewer the clone but being easily parried by a Kunai which pushed him off balance long enough for the clone to kick him back.

_'Right, so I need to broadcast my moves less while improving the speed... also need to note that the length of the sword makes it much easier to push me off balance if they push the side of the blade near the tip.'_ Naruto analysed cleverly. Haku was taking the occasional glance over and was actually a little relieved Naruto wasn't quick at learning everything.

The observing clone was taking notes on what was happening, and it could safely say that this would take a while. Naruto's stance, while not as bad as most Kenjutsu beginners was nowhere near foolproof and the level of comfort he displayed while swinging and thrusting was quite obviously low. It would take time to adapt to the weight, range and overall feel of Kenjutsu.

Naruto dashed forward once more, with a slash from his lower left side upwards in a diagonal arc. The clone leaned to the side as Naruto quickly adjusted the blade in his hand; spinning it into a reverse grip and thrusting it downwards towards the head of the clone. The clone again pushed the blade out of the way, causing it the stab into the ground.

Naruto wasn't about to let that stop him though, and held on tightly to the handle of the blade while swinging his body into a kick that collided with a cross guard deployed by the clone, causing it to fly back and dissipate as it hit the ground. Naruto frowned at this as he ruffled his hair slightly. _'I need sturdier clones...'_ He mused idly.

The blond's little testing continued for a few hours, as his level of comfort and familiarity was beginning to increase. He still wasn't exactly sure what his stance was supposed to be like, nor did he know if the way he swung the blade was even correct, but he could worry about that when he started training it fully. He could find some scrolls and ask Kakashi or some other Jōnin for assistance if he really needed to. As he was about to clash with a clone for the umpteenth time a large amount of water washed him away, along with his clones.

"Ugh... what the hell?" Naruto groaned out, as his vision began to clear to reveal a rather apologetic looking Haku. Naruto began to piece one and one together and let out a small sigh.

"Oh, I'm sorry Naruto-kun, I lost control of one of my techniques." Haku said with an embarrassed blush. Naruto rolled his eyes and leaned up and gave her a quick kiss, which she leaned into a little. She let out a slightly disappointed whine when he stopped abruptly.

"Geez, now I'm all soaked..." Naruto muttered as he stood to his feet and began to shake off some of the water. "...well, that's enough training for today I guess." He said lazily as Haku just giggled, embarrassed that she'd managed to accidentally drown her lover.

"Hehe... sorry?" She said in an unsure manner, while Naruto just shook his head dismissively.

"Don't worry about it..." Naruto said quietly, as he turned his head to seemingly nothing. "...now, what do you want Jiraiya-sensei?" He called out, as the white haired sage walked through the trees to reveal himself to the pair.

"I have a little job to do, I was wondering if you wanted to tag along?" The toad summoner spoke, as Naruto looked at him with a confused expression.

"What kind of job?"

**-****End-**

**Haku is 5'1" in canon at the age of 15, which is rather short for a male. Therefore, for now she is 4'11" as a female of 14. This is similar to Sakura in canon, who was 4.925 feet at the age of 13. To be honest I'm not sure if the '.925' part means inches or not, but I will assume it doesn't.**

**Bet you weren't expecting some Karin and Sasuke stuff in here, well I aim to surprise! I felt it was a nice touch having Naruto give Karin relationship advice, to make it clear they do act like siblings.**

**While Dattebayo has no literal translation, it is commonly translated as 'You/Ya know' in later chapters. Therefore, that is what I shall use it as in the rare-ish occasion I do use it.**

**Anyway... Review, Favourite and/or Follow. **

**LiamMorg. Out.**

**Ja Ne!**


	17. The Dawn of Destruction

**I don't own Naruto... if I did he would have red hair, like everyone else in the Uzumaki clan. The only reason he doesn't is because Kishi didn't bother to iron out the details of the clan before creating Naruto's appearance.**

**Quote of the chapter/day: "Murder in the search of peace is like racism in the search for equality, it will never work; there will always be hate remaining." **

**Chapter 17: The Dawn of Destruction**

**-Last Chapter-**

"_Don't worry about it..." Naruto said quietly, as he turned his head to seemingly nothing. "...now, what do you want Jiraiya-sensei?" He called out, as the white haired sage walked through the trees to reveal himself to the pair. _

"_I have a little job to do, I was wondering if you wanted to tag along?" The toad summoner spoke, as Naruto looked at him with a confused expression._

"_What kind of job?"_

**-Start-**

Naruto eyed the Gama Sennin carefully, not sure where this conversation was heading. To be honest, he wasn't sure he wanted a new mission so soon after the invasion of Konoha. If the invasion had shown him anything, it was that he couldn't become content with his skills since those considered gods amongst men could die in an instant. He wanted to actually learn new skills and bolster his abilities.

Then not one day into his Kenjutsu training, his new teacher Jiraiya decides to come and ask him if he wanted to come along for a job. Firstly, the man was arguably the strongest Konoha shinobi left, so he hardly needed the assistance of a Genin. Secondly, what kind of job could a Konoha shinobi have received in a time where the village was in turmoil. The Hokage dealt with a large number of mission requests, so where did this mission come from?

Jiraiya wasn't expecting Naruto to have company when he found him, but had the pleasant surprise of seeing the young blond washed away by a large amount of water, followed by him kissing the girl who produced the water. He could easily assume who said girl was, since they had talked about it not two weeks ago. He looked at her with a perverted smile – which subsequently resulted in her glaring at him – before speaking.

"So you're the girl who caught my apprentice's eye..." Jiraiya said, instantly making Naruto scowl at the non secretive attitude of the man. "...I must say, he has good tastes." The man continued, making Naruto growl at him while Haku just looked away with a blush of both embarrassment and shyness.

"Jiraiya..." Naruto said dangerously, dropping the 'sensei' from his name to make his attitude painfully obvious. "...I do believe I told you that in confidence that you'd mind your own business." He said, with a tone that promised potential pain if the man didn't drop the subject. The man decided to laugh at Naruto derisively though, furthering the blond's anger.

"Well you should've known better..." Jiraiya said mockingly, before dodging a small water needle. "...oh, it seems I'm already on the bad side of your little girlfriend." He continued, as Haku just huffed at him.

"Naruto-kun, who is this... person?" Haku said to the blond, turning to glare with annoyance at said man as she spoke the last work. Naruto just sighed and ran a hand through his soggy hair before looking around for his sword.

"Haku-chan meet Jiraiya of the Sannin. Pervert, meet Haku-chan." Naruto said with irritation, as Jiraiya staggered back in mock shock at being referred to as a pervert. Naruto just sneered at him before he managed to locate the blade. Haku was more than a little surprised such a famed Shinobi was such a... strange... individual.

"_Nice_ to meet you Jiraiya-san." Haku said, gritting her teeth. Jiraiya let out a small laugh at the attempted politeness, but the girl obviously didn't feel like being polite towards the man. Naruto sighed at the reaction of the girl.

"Jiraiya-sensei, if this is going to work out you're going to need to be less... like _you_ around Haku-chan. She isn't going anywhere." Naruto stated dryly, as Jiraiya let out a genuine smile at the confidence that he and Haku would remain together.

"I can tell..." The man stated quietly. "...well it's a pleasure to meet you Haku." Jiraiya said, in a tone which almost seemed serious. Naruto let out a small smile that the man could be serious when he needed to.

Haku was still a little put off by the man, but that was mostly because the man was so openly discussing their relationship. To be fair, she shouldn't really have minded, but that was that.

"Naruto-kun..." Haku said evenly, as Naruto turned to face her with a raised eyebrow while letting out a small 'hmm'. "...why does he know me anyway?" She asked plainly. Naruto thought about it for a second before shrugging.

"Because he's a shameless pervert and decided to take an interest in my love life." The blond said, as Jiraiya snorted in laughter. "...He asked if I was interested in anyone and I answered honestly." He stated, as Haku blushed at the level of comfort the blond showed while discussing his affection for her. It was certainly romantic in her eyes.

"Well, I'm glad you're so happy to admit you have feelings for me." Haku stated genuinely, a brilliant smile across her face that almost made Naruto forget they were talking. He shook his head vigorously, as a red tinge began to break out across his face. He gave a small cough before turning to face her with a large smile of his own.

"Why should I be ashamed of someone as perfect as you?" The blond stated, no deception in his tone. Haku blushed profusely at the declaration, and it brought no small measure of joy to her to hear him say it. She felt her heart quicken and attempt to leave her body from the simple but wonderful words he'd spoken with no dishonesty.

Unfortunately for the two love birds, they'd somewhat forgotten that Jiraiya was there in their little conversation. He looked on with pride that Naruto had found someone to care for so early in his life. He felt as though he'd already failed Minato by not looking after Naruto, but at least the blond had found plenty of happiness while he was elsewhere; that his life wasn't one of complete resentment and hatred.

"I am still here you know." Came the interruptive voice of Jiraiya. Naruto groaned in a mixture of irritation and embarrassment at the realisation. Haku didn't care in the slightest, still too cheerful from hearing her lover's opinion of her.

"Unfortunately you're right." Naruto said plainly, as Jiraiya face-faulted at the all-too-honest statement.

"My own apprentice doesn't appreciate me!" Jiraiya said with anime style tears pouring down his face. Naruto and Haku sweat-dropped at the somewhat childish action from the middle aged man, but decided not to bother mentioning it.

"We can continue this conversation later Naruto-kun, but I believe we've gotten a little off topic." Haku stated, as Naruto blinked a few times before slamming his palm into his face. Jiraiya also laughed with embarrassment that he'd forgotten what he'd come for so quickly.

"Right, the job..." Jiraiya started, as Naruto's expression turned serious as he looked on. "...I'd like you to help me find a certain woman." He finished. Naruto remained completely impassive for a few moments before a look of disbelief spread across his face.

"You're kidding right." Naruto said rhetorically. Jiraiya just shook his head before continuing.

"Not for that reason, I need to find a certain Kunoichi for the village." The white-haired man stated, as Naruto rolled his eyes before a scowl arose.

"Stop being so vague!" Naruto hissed out. Haku couldn't help but allow an amused smile to break out as she saw Naruto – who was usually quite in control of his emotions – all but raging at the white haired man.

"Fine! I've been tasked to locate Tsunade Senju and return her to the village." Jiraiya said seriously, while Naruto looked at him with both interest and confusion. She was known as one of the (if not _the_) best Kunoichi alive, but she had been out of active duty for a long time for reasons not publicly known. To need her now could only mean...

"They want her to be the next Hokage, don't they?" Naruto stated with a level of certainty that Jiraiya wasn't exactly expecting. He knew Naruto was inquisitive and clever, but he had clearly underestimated the blond somewhat.

"You're too smart for your own good Gaki..." Jiraiya mumbled, bringing a smug smile to Naruto's face while Haku just looked at him with amazement. "...yes, Tsunade Senju will be the next Hokage should she accept the offer." He stated, as Naruto tilted his head in investigation.

"_If?_ Why would she refuse such a position?" Naruto asked. Despite his intelligence he couldn't fathom why any Shinobi would turn down the greatest role in an entire great Shinobi village.

"She has some... issues... that may weigh her decision." Jiraiya said hesitantly. Naruto raised an eyebrow at the answer before shrugging.

"Well her problems aren't any of my business..." Naruto said honestly. It was an important aspect to Shinobi life to ignore things that didn't concern you; secrets and Shinobi were very tightly connected. "...but I have a request." He continued seriously. Jiraiya raise an eyebrow at the question before crossing his arms.

"What is it?" The man inquired. Naruto just smirked and looked over to Haku before speaking.

"I'd like for Haku-chan to come as well." Naruto said without hesitation. Haku smiled at the thoughtfulness, since she probably wouldn't have anything to do for a little while anyway. Jiraiya stared at Naruto for a few moments before sighing and rubbing the back of his head.

"Fine, but only her. Understood?" Jiraiya stated, as Naruto nodded with a victorious smirk. The man sighed in defeat while Haku gave Naruto a small wink, which in turn made him blush a little before closing his eyes.

"I understand perfectly, Jiraiya-sensei. Thank you." Naruto said professionally, making Jiraiya let out a 'hmph' before walking away.

"Go get ready you two, I'll be waiting at the gate in 20 minutes." Jiraiya stated as he left. Naruto looked down and noticed he was still rather wet and sighed. _'Great, I'll need to change too...'_ He thought, before looking over at Haku with an irritated gaze. She just poked her tongue out at him before disappearing in a **Shunshin**, which gave off the effect of a small snowstorm.

"Hmph... crystals are cooler..." Naruto muttered, as he used his own **Shunshin **to return home.

Not long later, Naruto was done packing in his apartment. He sealed most of his essentials into a generic sealing scroll since it conserved a great deal of space. _'Hmm... probably should've given one to Haku-chan...'_ He thought to himself, as an uncomfortable feeling invaded his being while he pursed his lips thoughtfully. _'I'm sure she'll be fine...'_ He thought, before leaving his home and locking up.

"Alright then, time to go." He said quietly to himself. He wasn't exactly sure about Tsunade being Hokage, since any Shinobi who was off duty as long as her obviously had some issues. Still, it wasn't his place to judge who the council selected to take up the role. He then began walking through the village before stopping briefly.

"It would probably be wise to tell someone where I am..." He muttered, before creating two Shadow clones to tell Karin and Sasuke that he'd be out of the village, since they were most likely to come looking for him.

After a small trek he arrived at the village gates to see Jiraiya and Haku waiting patiently. He smiled at the two of them as they both looked at him inquisitively.

"Shouldn't you bring some supplies?" Jiraiya said, not really believing that Naruto could forget such a thing. To his surprise Naruto pulled out a standard scroll and held it up for a moment, before shoving it back into his pouch. He shrunk slightly under Haku's irritated glare before Jiraiya spoke again.

"Let's get going then shall we?"

**-The Next Town-**

After a few hours of walking and a few brief stops to take a little rest, the group of three found themselves in another town. There seemed to be some sort of festival going on, since there were games and sales going on around all corners of the town.

The group then went to a nearby hotel, much to the confusion of Naruto and Haku.

"We don't really need to stop yet you know." Naruto said honestly, as Jiraiya shrugged.

"True, but to be honest we have no idea where Tsunade is..." He said, immediately getting a glare from Haku and a disappointed frown from Naruto. "...but I have a good idea of the rough location, so let's not run ourselves dry, OK?" Jiraiya said defensively, as Naruto just raised his hands in a placating gesture.

"Well, I guess we'll be staying here for a little while then." Haku muttered, as Naruto nodded. Then, a rather attractive woman turned up in front of the hotel and began to move enticingly. The weird part was, it all seemed to be for Jiraiya's benefit as he gawked at the way she was looking at him.

"Don't you dare." Naruto growled out as Jiraiya continued to gawk.

"Here's the room key, have fun, I'll be back later. Bye!" Jiraiya said, all in about 2 seconds before bolting after the woman and subsequently taking off with her. Naruto growled with irritation as Haku just looked at where the man previously stood with a twitching eye.

"Seems you were right Naruto-kun..." Haku started, as Naruto looked over at her. "...he really is a shameless pervert." She finished, as Naruto nodded in defeated. There was no point arguing against it since he made no attempt to hide it.

"Yeah... well, we may as well head up to the room." Naruto said impassively. Haku just nodded before following after him. The two arrived in a small room that they couldn't help but notice only had two beds. Naruto raised an eyebrow at the fact before thinking it over, which caused a scowl to break out across his features.

"_Ero-Sennin_..." Naruto growled out lowly. Haku let out a laugh of pure hilarity at the nickname Naruto had given the man. Naruto just looked at her amusedly, since he couldn't help but notice how angelic her laugh was. He shook his head with a warm smile plastered across his face, immediately forgetting the anger he was just feeling towards his teacher.

"While I doubt that woman will be able to take him for long, I assume Jiraiya will be gone for a little while." Naruto stated, as Haku smirked playfully. Naruto raised an eye at the action as Haku locked the door and then began to walk towards him enticingly, to which he instinctively gulped.

"So we have the room all to ourselves do we, _Naruto-kun~_?" She purred into his ear, making Naruto nod slightly, wondering just what he'd gotten himself into. The girl smirked before pulling away and grabbing him by the hand and leading him towards one of the beds.

"Uh... Haku-chan, what are yo-" Naruto started, before he was silenced by the girl placing her finger on his lips and giving him a beautiful smile. Naruto's protests immediately ended when she did so, and she inwardly laughed at how easy he was to manipulate. She lightly pushed him into a sitting position atop the bed, before placing herself onto his lap.

"If Jiraiya is going to have his fun with that girl, I'll give you the same opportunity." Haku said sweetly, as Naruto grinned at her obvious intentions. Obviously the two of them knew very little about sex, but that didn't mean they didn't desire any intimacy. The two of them were young, and very much infatuated with the other.

"If you insist, but don't go backing out once you start." Naruto stated playfully as Haku giggled lightly before reaching up and tracing her hand across his cheek. She couldn't help but notice that he twitched noticeably from the action and smirked deviously.

"Oh? Sensitive are we Naruto-kun?" Haku chirped as Naruto hissed lightly from her ministrations. His whiskers were somewhat of a secret weakness; they were very sensitive to the touch and he tried to avoid people touching them if possible, but he would obviously make an exception for his lover.

"Seems so..." Naruto said with eyes half lidded with enjoyment. "...but don't tell people about this, it would go from amusing to very annoying in no time." He said seriously, as Haku grinned at him with mirth.

"And what can you do to guarantee my silence Naruto-_kun_?" The girl mocked playfully. Naruto smiled at her actions, finding this side of his lover to be very endearing. It was all the more amazing knowing that nobody else would see this side of her unless she specifically allowed them to; it made it their little secret.

"I can think of a few things my _Snow Angel_." Naruto said suggestively as Haku blushed at the nickname he'd given to her. It really did amaze her how easily little things he said or did could affect her, and this was a prime example.

"You really are a flatterer, you know that?" Haku said in amusement, as Naruto shrugged it off. He didn't really care if he came off too strong, because nothing was too much when it came to his lover.

"You better get used to it Haku-chan, that won't change anytime soon... there are plenty of things about you that could come across as flattery." Naruto said, in a mixture of playfulness and honesty. Haku smiled at him lovingly as she continued to trace his whiskers with her fingers affectionately, greatly appreciating the subtle reactions he gave off when she did so.

"I could say the same, my _Golden Fox_." Haku stated, making Naruto grin up at her. Despite the fact that she'd intended for them to use this time a little more physically, the joy from the current conversation was hardly a bad thing.

While Naruto hardly liked being known for and associated negatively with the Kyũbi, he somehow found it anything but bad to be referred to as a fox by Haku. Perhaps his affection for her made his moral compass change or he just knew she wasn't using it menacingly, but as a sign of endearment.

In their own little word, the two had very little knowledge of what was happening elsewhere. With Itachi and Kisame having attacked the Jōnin-sensei of the Genin teams, and subsequently incapacitating Kakashi, things were going badly in Konoha. Sasuke was also informed that Itachi was hunting for Naruto and took off to find him.

If the woman who had enticed Jiraiya was a Shinobi, Naruto may have noticed her chakra network was disrupted by a Genjutsu. Due to the fact she wasn't a Shinobi her chakra network was far too small and inconspicuous to be noticeable to even skilled sensors if they didn't specifically check for fluctuations.

Naruto raised his hand up and stroked Haku's smooth black hair with tenderness as she purred lightly from the action. His other hand ran up her back, feeling her curvy figure inquisitively. Haku smiled as she wrapped her arms around the blond's neck as one her hands came up to caress his blond spikes.

Since the first time they had engaged in this kind of activity, the two of them couldn't help but desire more; the primal urge to further the intimacy between them simply begging that they come together once more.

As Naruto continued to trail his hands lovingly around her figure and hair, Haku felt warmth spreading through her form. It felt as though he was some sort of gift from Kami to make her feel safe and wanted; that she couldn't feel so at peace without him. Feeling impatience spread through her, she pushed the blond into a laying position with her atop him.

"In a rush, Haku-chan?" Naruto teased light heartedly. Haku just giggled before lowering herself to hover her head above his own; her hair cascading down around his face like some sort of curtain to keep the action hidden from the world. Naruto bit his lip, feeling him own desire to further the contact becoming almost unbearable.

"Oh? I thought I was the girl in this situation." Haku joked, having the desired effect when Naruto quickly placed a hand behind her head – giving off an almost primal growl as he pulled her quickly but lightly down to him. Their lips connected suddenly as they felt themselves instantly heat up from the contact.

Haku let out a small moan as she urged Naruto to continue the contact as long as possible. To her surprise and interest, she felt something pressing against her own lips as if seeking entry. In a mixture of confusion and fascination she parted her lips to see what was happening and was deeply surprised when a writhing appendage seemed to enter her mouth.

She opened her eyes to see Naruto's own cerulean blue orbs gazing into her own eyes, as his tongue raged unabated in her mouth. She moaned deeply from the feeling of the appendage seeking and rubbing against every corner of her cavern. On instinct alone, she began to move her own tongue against his as they battled for dominance.

They both moaned lowly, feeling rising lust and pleasure from the feeling of their tongues passionately writhing around one another. It was a strange sensation but neither could exactly argue that it was a bad one, since they were far too engrossed in continuing it. In a moment of haziness, Naruto was able to turn the table so that he was on top of his lover, with her looking around with confusion after breaking their lip lock

"I'm in control now." Naruto stated enticingly, as Haku grinned defiantly at the proclamation.

"We'll see about that _foxy_." Haku purred out seductively, making Naruto growl almost like an animal. He leaned down slowly and temptingly towards her, savouring the look of frustration on her face, before abruptly moving to the side and gently kissing her neck, making her let out a surprised moan.

"That feels good... where'd you learn that?" She said through breaths. Naruto raised himself up a little to look at her with a victorious smirk.

"My new sensei's a shameless pervert, remember?" Naruto stated knowingly, as Haku frowned somewhat at the idea of Naruto becoming one himself.

"If you become a pervert I will _not_ be happy." Haku stated with a deadly level of severity. Naruto smiled worriedly and shook his head fervently. He had no plans of becoming a pervert, but the thing Jiraiya talked about while he was around tended to eventually get rather sexual in nature if he wasn't careful.

"You don't need to worry about that Haku-chan, you're the only girl I need." Naruto stated disarmingly. It had the exact effect he was looking for, when her already perpetual blush seemed to deepen as she looked away shyly. He chuckled at the reaction he got as she just huffed somewhat unattractively.

"Are you this sweet with all the girls my _Golden Fox_?" Haku asked with carefree sarcasm. Naruto huffed indignantly at the jab, since he didn't really appreciate her implying he wanted anyone but her. He knew she was joking, but he'd need to remind her to work on her sweet talk.

"Nope, just you _Snow Angel_." Naruto said lovingly, as he lowered himself to her neck once more. This time she tilted her head to give him more freedom as he began to lick and suck on it skilfully as Haku moaned in appreciation.

Just as Naruto was about to try something there was suddenly a knock on their door. Naruto snarled in annoyance at the interruption, while Haku just whimpered as the boy stopped his rather pleasurable ministrations.

"Dammit Jiraiya... I'm going to kill him." Naruto said with clear irritation as he got up and shot Haku an apologetic smile. She waved him off, knowing he wouldn't choose to end it without this happening.

"You should probably let him in..." Haku said in disappointment, while Naruto just sighed and walked over to the door, unlocking it before turning the handle and opening the door enough to just peer around the door.

"You have the worst timing Jir-" Naruto started, as he realised with a noticeable level of horror that Jiraiya was definitely not the one at the door. No, this man was nowhere near as tall as Jiraiya and had black hair, parted in the centre and noticeable tear-troughs under his eyes. The most noticeable feature however, were his eyes themselves. Within the blood red colouration of his iris were the unmistakable black tomoe shapes present within all **Sharingan** eyes.

The man also bore a rather noticeable resemblance to one Sasuke Uchiha, which either meant that Sasuke had both grown and changed his hairstyle... or it meant that this man was one person Naruto was not keen on meeting. The man could only be Itachi Uchiha, the Kinslayer.

"To think this boy contains the Kyūbi..." Came a voice from beside Itachi, as a very distinct man came into view. This man _was _taller than Jiraiya, and had very obvious blue skin and shark like features, such as facial markings that resembled gills. He also was carrying around a very large bandaged blade, while wearing a long black cloak with red clouds on it that Itachi was also wearing.

_'They know about Kurama, this can't be good.'_ Naruto thought to himself, as he analysed the situation. Itachi was well known in Konoha for both his skill and his treachery. He was able to decimate the entire Uchiha clan in one night at the age of 13, and was named an ANBU captain a noteworthy length of time prior to that.

"Naruto-kun, you're coming with us..." Itachi said in a monotone, both confusing and worrying Naruto. The worry was obvious, but the fact that Itachi referred to him as Naruto-kun was very weird. He'd never even met the man. "...let's go outside." He ordered. Naruto narrowed his eyes while making discrete gestures for Haku to hide from behind the door before walking out of the room.

"Itachi-san, it would be annoying if he moved around, perhaps we should cut off a leg or two." Kisame stated menacingly, as Naruto scowled before jumping away from the duo. He gave them a glare before readying himself.

"So much for buying time." Naruto muttered quietly, as the two men just looked at him with amusement and expressionless faces, respectively. Kisame just placed his hand on the handle of his giant sword as he laughed viciously.

"Oh? The boy wants to play a little does he?" The shark-like man stated. Naruto just growled lowly as his thoughts raged. _'I have no hope of defeating even Itachi, my only hope is to wait for Jiraiya-sensei.'_ He thought analytically. The problem with the plan was that Jiraiya was wandering around with that woman, making it impossible to know when he'd arrive.

"We have no time to waste Kisame... I'll deal with it." Itachi stated with little emotion once more, as the tomoe shapes in his eyes began to spin and connect to one another, until the merged into a curved Shuriken pattern. **"...Tsukuyomi." **He said, as Naruto quickly prepared something he'd been working on, before he felt his consciousness shifting.

**-Tsukuyomi World-**

Naruto awoke to find himself standing in a rather strange environment. It consisted of a red moon in the sky bathing the entire illusion with a red light and clouds flying around giving the overall place a very moody atmosphere. Naruto noticed he was simply standing on the ground while Itachi was tied to a cross in front of him. He smirked as he realised that his little plan had succeeded.

The plan was rather ingenious, if a little simple. Since Naruto was on Sasuke's team he had experience with how the **Sharingan** worked, and had used his experience to think of ways to counter Genjutsu used by the eyes. He came to the conclusion that he could create an almost invisible mirror of crystal over his eyes, therefore reflecting visual Genjutsu back at the user. It seemed that his conclusion had been accurate.

Itachi looked around, still maintaining his emotionless visage. Naruto could tell from the look in the man's eyes that he was confused and slightly amazed by having his Genjutsu turned around on him; that this wasn't something that was meant to be possible.

"How did you do this?" Itachi asked with genuine curiosity. "...this is the most powerful Genjutsu in existence, how could you defeat it before it even began?" He asked, stunned by the fact that this boy had defeated his most powerful Genjutsu. He secretly was thrilled that Naruto could do this since he was still loyal to Konoha, but that didn't mean he'd stray from the orders of the Akatsuki. He would continue to be the villain that he was meant to be until Sasuke was ready to avenge his clan by killing their killer... Namely himself.

"That is none of your concern, Itachi." Naruto said professionally, not wanting to reveal anything to such a strong Shinobi unless he absolutely had to. Itachi let the ghost of a smile cross his features as he realised Naruto was obviously a very Shinobi-like person, despite his age. That would obviously make capturing him harder, which was a good thing.

"A wise sentiment, but useless in the grand scheme of things." Itachi stated. Naruto shrugged slightly at the answer he received, as he appreciated that Itachi wasn't just a stuck up and power hungry villain like Orochimaru.

"If you say so..." Naruto muttered before turning serious. "...now, what do you want with the Kyūbi?" He inquired. Itachi remained impassive as a few moments passed, much to Naruto's irritation.

"You have interested me, so I will tell you this... my organisation desires all the Bijū... we are known as the Akatsuki." The older Uchiha stated, as Naruto furrowed his brows in confusion. _'What could they possibly need all the nine Bijū for?'_ Naruto thought, before deciding to ask one of the Bijū themselves.

"_Any idea what they'd need the Bijū for, Kurama?" _Naruto asked, only to be surprised as he was met with silence. It was very unlike Kurama to not answer a question, whether the answer came out mockingly or informatively.

"What could you possibly need them for?" Naruto asked calmly, but he was inwardly very concerned at the revelation. If an organisation was after the Bijū, that meant they were also after him... he wouldn't be safe so long as the organisation existed and he could hardly handle Shinobi of Itachi's calibre.

"I see no reason to disclose that." Itachi said plainly, as Naruto groaned in irritation. Clearly it wasn't going to be as easy as a question and answer session. Then the dimension began to distort, signalling its cancellation.

**-In Reality-**

Naruto suddenly found himself back where he was prior to the usage of the Genjutsu. He looked over to Itachi and Kisame to see that Itachi's eye was bleeding and had shifted back into the default **Sharingan** while Kisame looked on with a puzzled expression.

"Itachi-san... why is he still standing?" Kisame inquired, as Naruto let out a small sigh of relief. Whatever that Genjutsu did was obviously not good for the victim if it was expected to weaken them that much.

"He reflected the Genjutsu." Itachi stated in a passive tone. Kisame's eyes widened as he looked over at the blond who was standing casually on the other side of the corridor. Then a large grin broke out across his face as he looked to Itachi.

"Looks like you finally found someone you can't defeat with a glance, ne Itachi-san?" Kisame mocked gleefully. The man knew that Itachi could probably defeat him if he tried, and it was _very_ rare that someone would get one over on the Uchiha, so he needed to savour any and all times when they did.

"Quiet Kisame... we have a guest." Itachi stated, as he caught a senbon that was about to pierce his neck from the side. Naruto scowled as Haku appeared at his side, battle ready.

"I thought I said to hide..." Naruto said quietly to the girl, as she glared at the two people in front of them.

"I was hardly going to let you fend for yourself." Haku stated confidently as she looked over her two opponents, taking in their appearances before noticing Itachi's **Sharingan**.

"It doesn't matter how many Genin we have, not against Itachi Uchiha... we're hardly capable of facing him..." Naruto said with certainty that worried Haku, since it was clear that Naruto believed Itachi was far beyond their level. "...but enough of that." He continued, a small smirk spreading across his face suddenly.

"Seems like we have some pests to deal with." Kisame stated with irritation, since he was being denied his fun and he couldn't kill Naruto at all.

"You two know what I am, so you must be knowledgeable about the Bijū in general..." Naruto stated, as Kisame let out a small chuckle. "...then you must know that Bijū chakra is very... potent. Even non-sensor types can easily detect it, so..." He continued, as a red aura burst into existence around him. "...do you think you can take me before Jiraiya gets here?" He asked confidently, using the name of Jiraiya to attempt to scare off his opposition.

"Clever Gaki isn't he?" Kisame said with a large grin. Itachi was not so amused, and was rather worried by the declaration. He was well aware that he and Kisame could not handle Jiraiya, so if the Sannin were to arrive they would be forced to retreat. Then he detected a very familiar presence behind him as a small smile appeared on his face, hidden by his high collared coat.

"It's been a long time... Sasuke." Itachi called out, as Kisame turned to face Sasuke while Naruto scowled at the arrival of the younger Uchiha member. Haku was surprised but somewhat relieved to have her other teammate there to help, despite the fact she was oblivious towards the relation between Sasuke and Itachi.

_'Just what I needed right now... Sasuke is going to do something foolish.'_ Naruto thought to himself with a sigh. If there was anything that could go worse he was sure it would happen soon enough.

"The **Sharingan**... and he's very similar you..." Kisame stated, the smirk never leaving his shark-like visage. "...who is he?" He asked, as Itachi remained completely still.

"My little brother." Itachi stated in a bored tone. Haku was naturally shocked by the declaration while Naruto just continued to watch carefully, while releasing Kurama's chakra at a steady rate to hopefully draw Jiraiya in.

"I heard the entire Uchiha Clan was killed... by you." Kisame said confusedly, as Sasuke was losing control over himself at the end of the corridor.

"Itachi... I'm going to kill you!" Sasuke called out in anger, as Naruto's expression hardened.

"Sasuke, now is _not_ the time for this! None of us are at his level!" Naruto called out worriedly, as Kisame grinned over at him. Itachi finally decided to turn towards Sasuke as they both stared at the other, **Sharingan **to **Sharingan**.

"I once did exactly as you said... I hated you, detested you... and survived to kill you." Sasuke stated in fury, before calming down noticeably. "...but I found that hatred led to little, my bonds with my friends are what give me strength! I will not let you harm them!" He shouted in determination. Naruto smiled at the declaration, but he knew it would make no difference in the outcome.

Sasuke's** Chidori** flared to life as he pulled his collar back a little. Itachi's facial expression turned inquisitive as he examined the **Chidori**, knowing exactly where the technique originated. Sasuke then threw his arm out to the side as he charged towards his brother, intent on killing him. Naruto frowned as he went through some hand signs.

"**Doton: Doryūheki!"** The blond called out, as a thick wall of earth rose between Sasuke and Itachi. Sasuke slammed the **Chidori **into the wall, basically destroying the entirety of the structure but being otherwise stopped in place.

Kisame then darted towards Naruto after seeing him get involved, swiping his sword downwards at the blond. Naruto jumped back but the sword grazed against the Bijū chakra swirling around him, seemingly consuming it all. Naruto raised an eyebrow at this while Haku prepared to launch an attack, before a poof of smoke appeared behind him, to reveal Jiraiya and the woman from before.

"You two underestimate me, the great Jiraiya falls victim to no woman, no matter her beauty!" Jiraiya boasted in a rather silly manner. _'I can't believe he's as strong as he is... he's so weird.'_ Naruto thought to himself with a sweat-drop. Haku shared the sentiment, while Sasuke continued to glare at Itachi.

"Must you act so stupid Jiraiya-sensei?" Naruto said plainly, making the man face-fault. "...not to mention you _did_ fall prey to her... beauty." He continued, looking over at Haku worriedly as he complimented her appearance. Haku glared at him slightly but decided to drop it – for now.

_'At least he didn't call me Ero-Sennin...'_ Jiraiya thought to himself sadly. Naruto just shook his head at the man's antics before turning back to face Itachi and Kisame.

"I agree with the Gaki... you are somewhat disappointing, Master Jiraiya. I was expecting anything but a lecherous old man with a childish disposition." Kisame stated with clear annoyance in his voice. While he was underestimating Jiraiya, it still disappointed him to no end to know that one of the Densetsu no Sannin was such a fool. Jiraiya then frowned and placed the woman he was carrying to the ground.

"Using a Genjutsu on an innocent woman just to get me away from Naruto... how pathetic... now though, I can eliminate both of you... since I can't let you have Naruto." Jiraiya stated seriously. Naruto sighed in relief that Jiraiya was actually going to take the situation seriously, rather than being his usual self.

Sasuke grit his teeth in indecision. One side of him wanted to argue that Itachi was his to kill and no one else's... but another side knew that he stood no chance against his brother at the moment and to just let it go. Jiraiya slammed his hands to the ground as the walls began to turn into a thick, fleshy substance.

"**Kuchiyose: Gamaguchi Shibari! (Summoning: Toad Mouth Bind!)"** Jiraiya stated, as the walls completely overtook the corridors. Kisame huffed in exertion as he attempted to free his feet from the overcoming flesh as Itachi looked on disinterestedly.

"You've both been swallowed by the mountain toad. You'll never escape this stomach." Jiraiya stated smugly as Naruto, Haku and Sasuke looked around, more than a little disgusted by literally being surrounded by a stomach.

"Kisame. Come." Itachi stated, as he took off running down a corridor. Kisame grunted as he freed his feet and felt his blade being stopped by the flesh.

"Easier said than... done." The shark man replied, as he wrenched his blade free from the fleshy substance. They both took off running down a corridor that was out of view from the Konoha Shinobi. After a few moments a loud noise was heard, as Jiraiya took off to investigate what happened.

Naruto followed after him to see a hole in the wall of the stomach, surrounded by black flames that seemed to exude extremely high temperatures.

"I thought you said you couldn't escape this." Naruto stated quietly as Jiraiya stayed silent, but was inwardly very worried by the power that would've been required to break out of the technique. It wasn't every day someone burned their way out of a fire-breathing toad. He then pulled out a scroll and began drawing a somewhat intricate sealing matrix as Naruto looked on with great interest, as his two teammates caught up to them.

"You know Fuinjutsu?" Naruto asked, since he was already planning of learning and hopefully mastering the art. Jiraiya continued to draw the seal until he finished and went through a few seals.

"**Fūka Hōin (Fire Sealing Method)."** Jiraiya called out, as the black flames were subsequently absorbed into the seal as Naruto watched with awe. Ever since learning of his family's skill in Fūinjutsu, the blond was always enamoured with sealing techniques. They were just there, calling to him.

"Well, that settles that... I guess." Naruto stated, as he looked over at his two teammates. More specifically, he was watching Sasuke for any sign of a reaction, since preventing him from attacking Itachi probably pissed him off.

"So what did those two want?" Sasuke growled out, very angry that he'd done nothing against his brother after so long of wanting to kill him with every shred of his body.

"The Kyūbi." Naruto stated dryly. Everyone present looked at him with either shock or surprise. Jiraiya looked at him closely and inquisitively.

"How did you know?" The sage asked, as Naruto shrugged.

"Itachi tried to use a Genjutsu on me, but I reflected it and used the time to question his motive for wanting me." The blond replied as though it were the simplest thing around. Haku looked at him carefully, not sure how Naruto of all people could reflect a Genjutsu.

"How did you reflect it, and what was it exactly?" The Yuki girl asked, as Naruto put his hand to his chin as he thought it over.

"I reflected it because I know the **Sharingan **Genjutsu techniques only work through eye contact, so I created a reflective layer of crystal over my eyes." Naruto answered sagely. This made Jiraiya smile with pride, as he was deeply impressed by the quick thinking. "...the technique was something called... **Tsukuyomi**... but it looked like he had to use the **Mangekyō Sharingan** to use it." He continued, as Sasuke scowled.

"He told me about the **Mangekyō **a long time ago... he said to get them you needed to kill your best friend." The young Uchiha stated, as Naruto smirked and backed away jokingly.

"I hope you aren't planning on doing that." He teased, as Sasuke snorted a small laugh. He had no plans to kill Naruto, not that he never thought about it when the blond annoyed him with his various pranks and actions. While they weren't watching, Jiraiya stomped his foot against the fleshy ground and the toad stomach receded into nothingness.

"Not... for the moment." Sasuke said deceptively. The two stared at each other with serious expressions for a few moments before bursting out with laughter. Haku looked on with an unamused expression before sighing and leaning back against one of the walls. Naruto then sensed an incoming presence and turned to see Guy jumping towards Jiraiya, before a small wall of crystal blocked his path.

"Guy-sensei, are you trying to hurt someone?" Naruto mocked light heartedly, as the man looked around with confusion. He then realised the group were all Konoha Shinobi, and that none of them were Itachi or Kisame.

"Uh... sorry... I thought you were Itachi." Guy apologised to Jiraiya, who just looked at him sceptically.

"Have I shrunk or did you get stupider?" Jiraiya asked the green beast, as said man face-faulted at the jab at his intelligence.

"Never mind that, I came to stop Sasuke from attacking Itachi... but it seems as though I was a little late." Guy stated, as Haku raised an eyebrow at the declaration.

"How did you know Itachi was going to be here?" She asked curiously, as Guy looked over to her with a more serious expression than she was used to.

"Itachi and Kisame attacked a few of us in Konoha, and left Kakashi in some sort of coma... we need a medical specialist to help him." Guy said grimly, as a smirk arose of Jiraiya's face.

"Then it looks like we're after the right person..." Jiraiya started, as Guy's face turned curious before he continued. "...the woman we're after... is Tsunade Senju, the greatest medical ninja around!" He exclaimed happily, as Naruto smirked slightly at his enthusiasm regarding his teammate's skill.

"Excellent! If anyone can help, it'll be Lady Tsunade!" Guy shouted exuberantly. Naruto sighed at the over excitement of the man, but couldn't help but be thankful that none of them had attempted to engage Itachi if he could subdue Kakashi so easily.

"In any case, we need to get a move on... I don't think staying here would be wise after what just happened..." Jiraiya said, as he looked over at the three Genin. "...Sasuke, you'll have to return with Guy to the village." He stated firmly, as Sasuke looked ready to protest before letting out a 'hmph' sound and nodding.

As they arrived on the path that led to Konoha one way and the next village the other, the two groups faced each other one last time.

"Best of luck to you with your search for Lady Tsunade." Guy said encouragingly. Naruto and Haku smiled at the statement as Naruto looked the man right in the eyes.

"Don't worry Guy-sensei, we'll get her." Naruto affirmed, as Guy looked at him with something resembling pride.

"Naruto, nothing impresses me more than guts... come here, I want to give you something." Guy said, as Naruto raised an eyebrow and looked over at the man who was ruffling through his vest for something.

"Lee got stronger with this... check it out!" The green beast exclaimed, as he pulled out a green suit just like the one he and Lee wore. Naruto instantly repressed the urge to vomit while Haku prayed to every god there was that Naruto would never wear the outfit. Naruto hesitantly took the outfit, trying his hardest to give an honest smile. He then turned to Sasuke who was looking at him with a twitching eyebrow.

"Have fun on your mission, I'll be back in the village... doing nothing..." Sasuke said regretfully. Naruto let out a small chuckle as he walked over and gave the Uchiha heir a reassuring tap on the shoulder.

"I'm sure you'll be fine Sasuke, try being sociable for once." Naruto said both jokingly and honestly. Sasuke growled at the jab at his social life but decided to play it off as a joke.

"Whatever Naruto..." Sasuke muttered before looking over at Haku. "...good luck being stuck alone with this idiot." He called over to her, as she laughed at Naruto's expense. Said blond just crossed his arms with a huff as Sasuke and Guy began their walk all the way back to Konoha.

Once Guy was sufficiently out of sight Naruto looked at the green outfit once more before groaning in disgust and looking over at Jiraiya.

"You wouldn't happen to be able to unseal that black fire, would you?" Naruto asked, as the man looked at him questioningly.

"No, why?" He asked.

"This thing needs to burn in the hottest corner of hell." Naruto stated as everyone looked at the green outfit and nodded mournfully before shivering slightly. _'How Lee wears that with pride is beyond me...'_ Haku thought to herself with disgust.

"Well, we ought to be moving on." Jiraiya stated, trying to get them back of topic. Naruto looked over the outfit once more before throwing in a nearby bin and continuing onwards to find Tsunade.

After a while, the group was walking on a dirt path in the middle of nowhere. Naruto was walking behind the other two, seemingly fine... but the truth was he was worried, not for himself but for those he held dear.

"_I swear I have the worst luck... first Orochimaru, now this 'Akatsuki' organisation. If this organisation in composed of people the likes of Itachi... none of the people I know are safe." _Naruto stated mentally, hoping to get some sort of reaction out of Kurama. The fox let out a small growl before finally replying.

"_**If an Uchiha wants the Bijū then there are a few reasons for doing so... the first would be to put us in new Jinchūriki so they can control us, or controlling us with the Sharingan..." **_Kurama replied, taking a small pause before continuing. **_"...but what if they are planning to revive it..."_** It said cryptically, making Naruto raise an eyebrow.

"_Revive what?"_ He asked curiously, not sure what could worry Kurama.

"_**Nothing... never mind."**_ Kurama said defensively, in turn confusing Naruto. _'Not like Kurama to be secretive...'_ He thought to himself. In front of him, Haku and Jiraiya were discussing the person they were looking for.

"So how are we going to find this Tsunade exactly?" Haku inquired, as Jiraiya let out a small laugh.

"Well, you may not know this, but Tsunade is an avid gambler... and a terrible one at that." The sage stated, as Haku raised an eyebrow in interest. "...She gambles large amounts of money and almost always loses it all, which earned her the nickname 'The Legendary Sucker'." He continued, as Haku frowned at the idea of such a great Kunoichi having such a foolish weakness.

"So we're going to ask around to see if she's been around recently, is that it?" The Yuki girl asked somewhat rhetorically. Jiraiya nodded with a smirk.

"More or less, it'll take a while but it shouldn't be too difficult to find her." He stated confidently. Haku nodded at the statement before something came to mind, which caused her to turn and look at Naruto who seemed to be in deep thought.

"Something wrong?" She asked warmly, as Naruto was awoken from his thoughts to face her. He thought about it for a moment before shaking his head. _'I guess I'll just need to get stronger to protect those precious to me... I won't let anyone harm her.'_ Naruto thought to himself with fiery determination.

"Since it'll take some time to find Tsunade, I have a technique that I'll be teaching you while we travel to kill some time... _and I was going to teach you it anyway."_Jiraiya said, thinking the last part of it to himself. Naruto looked on with interest about what Jiraiya could have in mind for him.

"I guess I can put my Kenjutsu training off for a little while." Naruto said with a small smile, making Jiraiya raise an eyebrow.

"Oh yeah, I noticed you had a sword when I found you back in Konoha..." Jiraiya said dumbly, making Naruto grin at him "...where'd you get it anyway? It looked pretty special." He asked curiously. Naruto's grin shifted into a smile as he pulled it out from over his shoulder.

"It belonged to my mother... it's called the **Akashio**." Naruto stated, running a hand over the blade. Jiraiya was very surprised that Naruto had managed to find Kushina's blade, since it was apparently lost a while ago. Unfortunately, he couldn't display his surprise since that would reveal that he knew the woman. He wondered how he managed to overlook the fact that it was obviously Kushina's blade, but it had been at least 13 years since he'd seen it.

"I see, I was under the assumption you didn't know your parents." Jiraiya stated cleverly, trying to deduce whether Naruto was aware of who Minato was to him. Naruto just shrugged a little before placing the blade back in its scabbard.

"I don't know my father... I couldn't get that out of the Sandaime." Naruto said in a downcast manner, while Haku grabbed his hand comfortingly.

Jiraiya was unsure whether to reveal Minato's relation to the boy, since there were a few factors weighing for and against it. Obviously Minato had enemies and Naruto would receive those enemies should he reveal his parentage... not to mention the citizens of Konoha would probably have a riot if the 'Demon' revealed himself to be the son of their hero.

On the other hand, Naruto was clearly quite intelligent and mature for his age and would probably be able to keep it a secret, at least publicly. He also deserved to know the man's identity, since to be honest it was not their decision whether he knew of his parentage or not.

_'I should continue to keep it a secret... for now at least.' _ Jiraiya thought with a little uncertainty. He owed Minato and Kushina a debt that he could only repay by watching over Naruto, which was already turning into a difficult task. The fact that he'd all but abandoned him for the first 12 years of his life was bad enough as it was. After a little while of travelling they arrived at a town situated in a large 'hole', where a festival seemed to be taking place.

**-Festival Town-**

"Alright you two, enjoy the festivities for now and I'll meet up with you later." Jiraiya said, as he walked off to do... whatever it was he did. Naruto looked over to Haku as she shrugged at him before a smile broke out across her face.

"Well let's not waste our time, come on!" She exclaimed, grabbing his hand and dragging him off through the streets of the town.

"I'm perfectly capable of walking myself 'ttebayo!" Naruto called out as he struggled to keep up pace with the girl. It brought a smile to his face regardless of the circumstances, that she was so full of fun and joy.

"So uh... what should we do?" Haku asked nervously, realising that she had dragged Naruto along for basically no reason since she wasn't really sure what to do with this time. Naruto let out a small laugh at the action before shaking his head with amusement.

"Let's go grab something to eat from one of these stalls... then try out some games or something." Naruto said comfortably. He didn't really care what they did, so long as they were to do it together. He could only imagine what would've happened if she hadn't come along, Jiraiya would probably have ditched him to wander aimlessly while messing around with various women.

"Sounds like a plan." Haku stated as they took off at a more controlled pace, going around the town and looking around various places, their hands still joined. Many of the various other people couldn't help but smile at the sight of the young couple wandering around the town with such contentment on their faces.

The two eventually found a small bench to sit on while they ate, just generally enjoying the sights and sounds that were originating from all around them.

"This town seems like a nice place." Naruto mused idly. Haku nodded at it, but couldn't help but wonder if he was comparing it to Konoha. He was deeply fixated on serving Konoha as a Shinobi and hopefully its Hokage, but he didn't really get to experience daily life there without being glared at or talked about. She did notice that people were being kinder since the invasion though, so news must have spread about how Naruto helped during said invasion and his performance during the Chūnin exams.

"It does, it has a very lively atmosphere... though it's a bit too crowded for my tastes." Haku said honestly, as Naruto nodded in agreement.

"I'm sure that's just because of this festival or whatever... it's probably a lot calmer than this. Hell, Konoha was probably crazier than this the day of the Chūnin exams." Naruto replied. As Haku thought about it she couldn't exactly argue with the statement, since it was a pretty good guess.

"I suppose you're right..." Haku said with a smirk, before her face turned more serious. "...so, how are you doing?" She inquired, as Naruto looked at her with confusion.

"What do you mean?" The blond asked obliviously. Haku rolled her eyes at him playfully as she continued.

"You know what I mean genius... you can't exactly be happy that this organisation is after the Kyūbi, and by relation – you." The Yuki girl stated, as Naruto frowned in thought. He closed his eyes as he looked down.

"I'm not worried about myself..." He started, as Haku looked at him with confusion.

"Who _are_ you worried about?" The ice wielder asked with confusion evident in her tone. She wasn't exactly on the same wavelength as Naruto, since he tended to be far too selfless for anyone to properly read his thoughts.

"I'm worried about everyone associated with me..." The blond elaborated, as he turned to lock his eyes with her own. "...I'm worried about you." He stated, as Haku at first had the urge to smirk at the statement before noticing the severity of his gaze.

"Why are you worried about me? They're after you." Haku stated softly, not really understanding what his fear was.

"If they need to get to me, and I'm not easy enough to capture... what do you think they'll do? What would a true Shinobi do?" Naruto inquired seriously. Haku thought about it for a moment before frowning as she realised what he was implying.

"They would take advantage of your emotions and connections." The girl answered quietly as Naruto frowned in turn. He leaned back a little in thought as he turned his head to the sky.

"I have no chance of defending you from the likes of Itachi." Naruto said sadly, as Haku shifted closer to him and leaned her head against his shoulder.

"You won't have to..." Haku started, as Naruto tilted towards her in interest. "...I've made it my goal to be by your side... if the Akatsuki threaten you then _I_ will become stronger to protect _you_." She stated without doubt. Naruto smiled warmly at the determination she showed to protect and be beside him, she truly was perfect.

"I'll hold you to that." Naruto said happily. Haku just let out a small laugh before leaning into his side further and closing her eyes.

"The only one who gets to own you is _me_." She stated playfully, as Naruto let out a hearty laugh.

"If you put it like that, I can't really argue can I?" Naruto stated as she hummed in agreement. The two settled into a peaceful silence, before some time passed.

"Well, we should probably find Jiraiya." Naruto said somewhat disappointedly. Haku let out a small whine as she pulled herself off him and stood up.

"Fine... let's go." She muttered, as they both took off back into the town. _'I can speed this up...'_ Naruto thought to himself as he placed a finger on the ground and closed his eyes before locating a large chakra signature.

"Found him." He stated, as he took off in a very precise direction. They arrived at a building to hear very distinct, lecherous laughter. Naruto instantly face palmed at what the sound was obviously from before grudgingly walking through the curtain to see Jiraiya with two random women, drinking sake out a small cup.

"Unbelievable." Haku muttered, as Naruto nodded in agreement. He coughed loudly to get Jiraiya's attention, as the man faced him with a rather dim-witted expression.

"Ah Naruto, are you done with the festival already." The white-haired sage asked, as Naruto nodded with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes, now come on. You said you had something to teach me." Naruto basically ordered. Jiraiya let out a grunt before standing up and walking out of the store, muttering all the way. They eventually made their way out of the town to a small overlook it before Jiraiya pulled out a water balloon and threw it to Naruto, who looked at it sceptically.

"Is this a joke?" The blond asked plainly, as Jiraiya shook his head and pulled out a balloon of his own before it began to convulse violently before popping.

"This is the first stage of training for this technique, and it centres around rotation... you need to rotate your chakra within the water balloon until it pops, following a similar method to both the tree walking and water walking exercise." Jiraiya stated cleverly, displaying his more Shinobi-like attitude.

"I see... what technique is this for exactly?" Naruto asked, already having a fairly good idea of what Jiraiya was going to say. The man smirked as he held out a hand, before chakra began to form and rotate until it created a blue ball of rotating chakra.

"This technique is... the **Rasengan (Spiralling Sphere)**." Jiraiya stated, as Naruto looked at him with confusion before puzzle pieces finally began to fall together within his mind.

_Spiky blond hair..._

_Blue eyes..._

_Jiraiya as a teacher..._

_The** Rasengan**..._

_Unsafe to tell me about my father..._

_Why I was selected as the Kyūbi Jinchūriki..._

Jiraiya and Haku looked on worriedly as Naruto stood perfectly still; his expression slowly shifting from interest to shock, to amusement and back. He then began to laugh quite loudly, but it wasn't a laugh of mirth... but of anger. He then stopped abruptly and stared Jiraiya in the eye.

"I'm the Yondaime's son, aren't I?"

**-****End-**

**Some of you may have noticed I refer to Itachi as 'the Kinslayer' whenever I mention him... I figured it was an appropriate moniker. **

**In case some people didn't get it, Akatsuki roughly translates to 'Dawn' or 'Daybreak', hence the title. **

**Anyway... Review, Favourite and/or Follow. **

**LiamMorg. Out.**

**Ja Ne!**


	18. April Fools 2014

**I don't own Naruto... if I did, The Sage of Six Paths would look much cooler.**

**Well, April Fools is over so now I should probably change the chapter title as not to confuse people.**

**April Fools!**

**-Last Chapter-**

_Jiraiya and Haku looked on worriedly as Naruto stood perfectly still; his expression slowly shifting from interest to shock, to amusement and back. He then began to laugh quite loudly, but it wasn't a laugh of mirth... but of anger. He then stopped abruptly and stared Jiraiya in the eye._

"_I'm the Yondaime's son, aren't I?" _

**-Start-**

Jiraiya looked at Naruto with a steady face, his expression not betraying what he was feeling at all. Quite frankly, he was a little pleased the boy had managed to figure it out on his own since it meant he could tell Naruto the truth AND not have to do it himself.

"That's correct Naruto." He said with a little bit of happiness in his tone. Naruto frowned for a few moments before narrowing his eyes at the man. This was obviously a little surprising for the boy, despite the fact he'd worked it out himself. He figured he'd just come up with some crazy theory that had no actual credence.

"So, I really am the Yondaime's son?" Naruto reiterated, not really believing it the first time. Jiraiya's nod was all the answer he needed after that though. "...awesome! That means I can use the Hiraishin right?" Jiraiya instantly gained a look of confusing from the question he was asked, it didn't really make any sense to him.

"Why would that mean you can use the Hiraishin?" The sage asked confusedly, more than a little caught off guard by the strange question Naruto had posed to him.

"I'm the Yondaime's son! That _obviously _means that I can use the Hiraishin, it's probably a bloodline limit of the Namikaze clan!" The boy exclaimed exuberantly, as Jiraiya did a mixture of a sweat drop and a face fault.

"It wasn't even created by Minato, and there is no Namikaze cl-" The sage attempted to stop Naruto's rather crazed ramblings, but was cut off guard when Naruto suddenly pulled some three-pronged Kunai from nowhere and began throwing them like a madman.

"Where did you get those? What the hell is going on?!" The white haired man shouted, noticing that Haku had completely disappeared from where she was standing. She was now running around, flailing her arms around like some sort of wacky waving inflatable arm flailing tube man

"I'm a main charaaacter!" She shouted loudly as Jiraiya face palmed in response to the sheer madness that was occurring around him. Then Naruto began to teleport around to the various Kunai he scattered like it was going out of style.

"I'm awesome 'ttebayo!" Naruto called out, as a random blond haired girl appeared besides Jiraiya. He stared at her with a twitching eyebrow, hoping that she wasn't going to join in on the craziness that was occurring. When she shot him a foxy grin he instantly regretted even letting that train of thought creep into his mind.

"I'm Natsumi Uzumaki! I'm Naruto's long lost sister who just so happens to contain the other half of the Kyūbi!" The girl exclaimed, before pulling out her own three-pronged Kunai before scattering them just like Naruto had done. Jiraiya just looked on with a mixture of shock and interest. He was shocked that such craziness was happening around him after so serious a question was asked, but he was interested in where these developments would lead.

"Ku ku ku... with this **Sharingan **that I just so happened to obtain after fixing my arms I will take over the world!" Orochimaru – who had just slithered out of the ground as if by magic – exclaimed madly. Naruto and Natsumi turned to the snake before taking heroic poses.

"Stop right there criminal scum!" Naruto shouted, throwing a three-pronged Kunai at the snake Sannin, who quickly evaded it before wrapping his tongue around the handle and giving Naruto a laugh that he shouldn't have been able to do with his tongue out.

"Such a puny weapon will not st-" The snake started, before Naruto appeared in front of him in a flash of yellow, a brilliant blue Rasengan shinning in his hand.

"Now how can he use that all of a sudden!?" Jiraiya exclaimed, mentally pulling his hair out since he couldn't comprehend anything that was happening at the moment. The only thing he knew for sure was that he needed to stop drinking so much.

Naruto thrust his Rasengan forward with an unnecessary roar, hitting Orochimaru in the stomach as the man's face convulsed into a look of comical pain. Jiraiya sweat-dropped at the sight of his old teammate looking so foolish.

"Defeated by a 13 year old boy after spending 50 years in the pursuit of power and immortality... oh the irony!" The snake said, as he let loose a very unconvincing last breath. Jiraiya just walked over and kicked the man before he was certain that he was dead.

"I am so drunk." The sage stated. Then 10 figures appeared in the clearing wearing black cloaks with red clouds adorning their faces.

"Kyūbi Jinchūriki...s... we have come for the beasts you contain." A man with orange spiked hair and rippled eyes spoke. Just like that, both Naruto and Natsumi erupted into an orange flame before transforming into a giant chakra golem in the shape of Kurama.

As if on cue, two giant black orbs formed in front of both golem's mouths. After a few moments of growing in size and power they shot forward with remarkable speed.

"**Bijūdama!" **The two blonds spoke in sync. A massive explosion that probably should've killed them all then blast out from the location the 10 Akatsuki members were stood waiting to die... apparently, before clearing to reveal nothing but shreds of black cloaks.

"Yeah we did it!" Natsumi exclaimed as Naruto ran up and hugged her fiercely. Jiraiya just walked over to a tree that was still standing somehow before leaning against it and sliding down its face.

"Whatever..." The white haired man said lowly, having completely given up trying to understand the situation.

"Hey Jiraiya-sensei..." Naruto said, from one side of the man while Natsumi leaned close to his ear.

"_**...April Fools."**_

**-End-**

**Yeah... bet you guys guessed what was going on in the first two paragraphs didn't you? The REAL chapter should be out tomorrow if I can keep to my schedule properly, though I do have things to do today so it may be postponed to Thursday or Friday.**

**You guys are welcome, by the way.**


	19. Makers and Meetings

**I don't own Naruto... if I did, nearly all the recurring Kekkei Genkai would be explored the same level of depth as the Sharingan, Mokuton, and Rinnegan.**

**Quote of the chapter/day: "Our souls are like the skies; they could brighten the world with a glorious light, or condemn it to a murky darkness."**

**Chapter 18: Makers and Meetings**

**-Last Chapter-**

_Jiraiya and Haku looked on worriedly as Naruto stood perfectly still; his expression slowly shifting from interest to shock, to amusement and back. He then began to laugh quite loudly, but it wasn't a laugh of mirth... but of anger. He then stopped abruptly and stared Jiraiya in the eye._

"_I'm the Yondaime's son, aren't I?" _

**-Start-**

Jiraiya stood rooted to the spot, unable to comprehend how his plan had not only backfired, but had clearly led to a dangerous situation. He'd known Kushina and she was very susceptible to her anger, which he knew was one of the key factors for Jinchūriki becoming unstable. Her strong chakra made it virtually impossible for the Kyūbi's chakra to leak through the seal, but Naruto wasn't Kushina.

If Naruto were to react how the sage thought he would if his suspicious were proven true, then it was entirely possible that he'd have a raging Jinchūriki to deal with. Naruto was usually rather controlled, that was something the man could state pretty surely... but he knew friends and family were _very_ important to the blond boy and he'd probably lose his composure very quickly in a situation... like this one.

It wasn't even the fact that he was worried that Naruto would hate his father. No, the sage was worried that Naruto would hate _everyone else_... if his father was worshipped for defeating the Kyūbi while his only son was hated for containing it, that may strike a serious cord within Naruto's mind.

Obviously there was the possibility that Naruto would loath Minato for what he'd done; for sealing the beast which would almost inadvertently be hated by the entire village into his own son, for leaving him to fend against a village mourning their leader and loved ones.

Minato was too kind. He was too trusting as a person, that was his fatal flaw. He probably believed the entire village would see Naruto as the hero that he was in reality, but that was never really going to happen. There was no way they'd see the container of the fox as a hero just after said fox had ravaged the village and killed their friends and families.

Kushina would probably kill Minato herself if she'd seen just what the man had done to their son. She was probably one of the scariest people the white-haired man had ever known, and that sword of hers (which was now in Naruto's possession) was aimed at him more times than he could count. She would definitely not be pleased with the way Naruto was treated, nor would she forgive Minato for allowing such a thing to come to pass.

"Well?" Naruto said with a very serious tone, which was almost too calm for Jiraiya's liking. Haku was – at first – a little amused by the question the blond had asked, but seeing Jiraiya's reaction and the boy's own expression made her realise there was not the slightest trace of humour within the question.

Her expression darkened as she realised what was happening here, Jiraiya _knew... _he must've known all along. The white haired sage knew of Naruto's parentage, he was the Yondaime's sensei for the love of Kami! If what she'd read was correct, the two of them were very close too so there was no way Jiraiya wouldn't have known about such a development. It was at that moment in time where she could honestly say she wouldn't be disappointed if Naruto killed the man.

_'What right does he have to keep such a thing hidden away?'_ Haku thought to herself with a stern frown plastered across her usually beautiful face. _'...The man was Naruto-kun's father, why would they hide it?'_ Her expression eased up considerably as she looked over at Naruto once more to see his calm stare.

She had no words of comfort, no statements to calm him, no idea of how to ease him. She knew that beneath his façade he was hurting, not just because the very man who had made him what he was was his own father, but because such a thing had been kept from him. She knew he was close to the Sandaime and the man probably knew as well, being the Hokage before (and technically, after) Minato took the position.

The fact that Naruto's own mother had stated in her letter to him that she couldn't divulge Minato's identity to their son was the strangest part. Why wouldn't his own mother trust him to keep the information a secret? Wouldn't she understand that he would want to know something like this? If the Uzumaki clan were all but destroyed, she would understand the pain of having no relatives.

Naruto' expression began to break, his rage beginning to show through the mask. His eyes flickered red as an oppressive aura began to emanate from where he stood. He grit his teeth and clenched his fists tightly, barely containing the urge to destroy something.

"**ANSWER ME!"** The blond roared loudly, as Jiraiya and Haku could _feel_ the anger. Haku felt her heart clench at the anger he was displaying, since she knew it was all to hide the pain he felt by having this kept from him for so long. Jiraiya wasn't particularly fazed by the anger, he knew Naruto couldn't really harm him... what he was really afraid of was losing the boy's trust, he'd already failed as a godfather and Naruto could possibly cut all ties with him if this conversation went awry.

"It's true... you are the son of Minato Namikaze." Jiraiya said quietly. Naruto wasn't really sure what he was expecting, since he was all but certain that he was correct. That said, having his suspicions confirmed only served to make the boy angrier.

"_You knew, didn't you."_ Naruto seethed at Kurama, who didn't seem to be able to find his prideful side to tell the boy off for speaking to him in such a way.

"_**I did."**_ The fox replied calmly, not really caring if Naruto was angry at him. Anger was a good thing, letting it out was far better than keeping it in, though Kurama wanted him to release it so that he could get the opportunity to leak out his chakra. Naruto growled and cut the link, starting to have serious questions about his loyalties.

_'Everyone kept this from me... everyone!'_ Naruto was not what one would consider stable at this point, his intelligent mind going over every small detail and deducing crazed theories of why such a thing would be kept from him. His stare pierced into Jiraiya's soul – his eyes now permanently red as a result of his fury.

While it was hardly logical to believe that the identify of his father was kept from him to make him suffer, he couldn't help it. The man had been his idol his entire life and to know that his idol not only was the person who sealed the Kyūbi into him, but also his own _father_ was too much for him to swallow. It was different when the man was doing his duty as Hokage, protecting his village by sealing the Kyūbi away, but knowing he openly did it to his own son was making Naruto behave very irrationally.

If Naruto would've thought it over more carefully, he would easily have been able to find a viable reason for the Yondaime – no, his father – to have done such a thing. He was not only an Uzumaki, but he was Uzumaki born of a Jinchūriki. He was naturally attuned to the chakra of the Bijū, more so than any other candidate. Not only that, if Minato had used another child when he refused to use his own it would've made him out to be a hypocrite and a monster.

"Naruto, you have to understand why this was kept from you. If it were known that you were the son of the Yonda-" Jiraiya started, only to receive a heated glare from the boy in question. It was getting all the more clear Naruto was not willing to listen to such an argument.

"I don't care if _they_ knew! This is about why _**I **_didn't know!" Naruto responded, his tone displaying his raging emotions.

"You could've told someone, it could have led to uproar within the village!" Jiraiya wasn't going to just accept Naruto's anger, there were specific reasons why he wasn't informed that were set by the Sandaime himself. To be honest, he didn't really agree with most of them but he never wanted to be on the receiving end of the conversation he found himself in.

"**I don't care!** This is **MY** father we're talking about! **YOU HAD NO RIGHT TO KEEP THIS FROM ME!**" This entire conversation was doing little to sate Naruto's anger, it was probably exacerbating the whole thing. Haku was naturally in agreement with Naruto, but she had little part in this conversation. She also had no idea how to help so there was no reason for her to get involved.

"That's exactly my point! You don't care, so you would've happily let the whole village know and there would probably be a civil war between those who worship the Yondaime and those who hate you!" Jiraiya was trying to think up reasons why what he did was just, but as Naruto continued to seethe about his own family being kept from him the discussion was clearly not leaning in the man's direction. He had to agree that family was not the business of anyone but family members.

"You're assuming a lot Jiraiya." Naruto said with a distinctly feral growl. "...you kept this all from me on the assumption that I would tell someone! Nobody trusted me to keep it a secret! I couldn't care _LESS_ if someone else knew, but this is _my_ family we're talking about and _**I**_ deserved to know!" If any other of Naruto's statements had missed their marks, this one definitely struck home. The blond was right, this was all done on the assumption that Naruto wasn't mature enough to keep it to himself, so they made him grow up thinking his parents had simply abandoned him or died without anyone knowing for potentially nothing.

Jiraiya stood silently, his head tilted downwards to the ground with his eyes closed and his brows furrowed. Naruto felt his rage subside a little at the action, as his words had clearly gotten through to the man a little. Jiraiya had to admit that he was wrong in not telling Naruto, but there was little he could do. The problem now was whether to tell the blond that he was his godfather or not.

_'If I tell him he'll probably freak out even more... but if I don't, he might hate me if he finds out... more than he will if I tell him now.' _Despite his perverted nature, silly attitude and childish demeanour, Jiraiya was a rather intelligent man. It takes a great deal of intellect to learn Fuinjutsu, unless you are born into the Uzumaki clan... those damn red heads take to it like fish to water.

"You're right Naruto... you deserved to know and we didn't trust you with the information..." Jiraiya said slowly, with noticeable guilt in his tone. Naruto's face shifted to an impassive look, not really feeling victorious at all with getting the man to agree with him. "...there is something else you should know as well." Jiraiya was admittedly worried what would happen here, but he needed to say this.

"What is it?" Naruto asked calmly, having settled himself down to being at least neutral. It wasn't going to help him to act like a child, since there was little he could fault Jiraiya for. It was probably by general order that he not learn of his parentage.

"As you know, I was Minato's Jōnin-sensei and I later took him as an apprentice... but we had quite a close relationship." The sage started, as Naruto narrowed his eyes at the man. "...as such, when Minato and Kushina conceived you they offered me the position of being... your godfather." The look of disgust that briefly crossed Naruto's features was all Jiraiya needed to see to know what the boy thought of that statement. Haku shared Naruto's sentiment, seriously doubting how reliable and trustworthy Jiraiya really was.

"Excuse me?" Naruto said lowly, his tone tipped with venom. Jiraiya gulped but decided to continue on regardless.

"I am your godfather, Naruto." Jiraiya stated, as Naruto stood entirely motionless. That was – at least – until the water balloon he'd been holding throughout this entire conversation exploded with violent red energy.

"Leave. Now." Naruto said slowly and quietly. Jiraiya opened his mouth to argue but Naruto glared at him intensely. "I. Said. Leave!" The substantially increased volume of the statement was plenty for Jiraiya, who nodded sadly before placing another water balloon on the ground and walking away back towards the town.

"I'll be back later..." The man muttered as he left, while Naruto scoffed.

"Do whatever you want." The blond retorted as he looked down at the water balloon and went to pick it up. He stared at it for a few moments before recalling what Jiraiya had said to do with it.

"_This is the first stage of training for this technique, and it centres around rotation... you need to rotate your chakra within the water balloon until it pops, following a similar method to both the tree walking and water walking exercise."_

This made Naruto shrug as he began walking to a more secluded location, completely ignoring Haku. The girl frowned as she recognised that Naruto was certainly not in a good mood, he couldn't hide his feelings from her. Behind the anger and disappointment was a boy who wanted his parents, a boy who wished his godfather had been there for him when he needed him.

She slowly followed after the boy until he stopped and sat, crossed legged on the floor and remained mostly motionless, other than the slowly shaking water balloon in his right hand while his left leaned lazily against his knee while his face leaned against the hand. She assumed that he didn't know she was behind him, since he made no attempt to speak to her.

He continued to sit in the same position for a little while before she noticed the water balloon had stopped any movement it had previously, before his right arm dropped to the ground, releasing the balloon and allowing it to roll aimlessly across the ground. He lifted his right arm once more as a small 'claw' composed of a blue crystal appeared around his index finger, which he then used to idly create small drawings in the soft earth.

"I don't know how to feel..." Naruto said loudly, making Haku jump back a little in surprise of the now broken silence. He turned his head a little to signify that he was talking to her making her sigh in defeat and stupidity, since she was foolish enough to believe she could sneak up to a sensor.

She shrugged off her surprise and took a few steps forward, observing Naruto closely as he drew a seemingly shapeless figure in the ground. She then sat down next to him while he flashed her a forced smile. She returned the gesture awkwardly, not sure what to do.

"What _are_ you feeling right now? Are you angry, and at who?" Haku inquired, trying to get Naruto to explore his emotions rather than think about them. The problem with intelligence was simple, intelligence and emotion were two things that couldn't always be balanced properly. Some people would spend too much time thinking about something to experience it, while others gave no thought at all and made mistakes.

"I do feel angry... I'm angry at... argh! Everyone!" Naruto called out, silently thanking that nobody was around to hear him shouting out angrily. Haku let a small smile cross her face as she rubbed his back soothingly.

"Are you angry at me?" Haku inquired cleverly, trying to make him narrow down the list. Naruto widened his eyes and looked over to her with a panicked look.

"N-No! Of course I'm not, you've never done anything to anger me." Naruto exclaimed quickly, trying to ensure he didn't hurt the girl's feelings.

"Are you angry at the villagers, for hating you and cursing your existence?" She asked calmly, as Naruto began to realise what she was doing. He continued to trail his hand through the ground as she maintained eye contact with him.

"No... they were all just scared. The Kyūbi had killed their friends, their families, their Hokage... they didn't think properly and I can't really blame them for it." Naruto said with a strange level of maturity. Haku smiled at his loyalty to those in his village, despite everything he'd learned and knew.

"Are you angry at Jiraiya, for neglecting his duties as your godfather?" She continued, as Naruto stayed silent for a few moments to gather his thoughts in a way that wouldn't be clouded with anger.

"I... don't think so. He's a Shinobi, one of the Densetsu no Sannin... he might have had other duties, I can't fault him without knowing why." The blond stated, despite the fact that he _really_ wanted be angry at Jiraiya he was finding it difficult to stay mad at the man without fair reasoning.

"Alright then..." The Yuki girl stated, before her expression turned serious. "...are you angry at your father?" She asked. If Naruto had looked closely, he would've noticed she didn't list a reason why he could be angry this time.

"Yes." Naruto answered quickly and with certainty. Haku furrowed her brows and took on an inquisitive stare as she continued.

"Why are angry at him?" She asked, having a fairly good idea of what this was really about. Naruto sat still while thinking it over, finding it difficult to find a real answer to the question. He knew that something had him upset but he couldn't pinpoint it, but the closer he got he found his anger slipping towards sadness. Then it clicked.

"I'm angry at him for not letting me know who he was!" Naruto shouted, before his face became a lot more melancholic "...I'm angry at him... because... I... I never got to... meet him." His tone clearly displayed the sadness he felt. Naruto had admired the man all his life, to know he was looking up at the face of his father hurt him beyond measure.

"You're not really angry at anyone, are you?" She asked quietly, having deduced what the real problem here was.

"That's the problem, I'm angry and I've got nobody to be angry with!" The blond was clearly struggling to handle the information since he'd wanted to know of his parents for so long. "...they all had their reasons, my father was bound by duty to save the village, Jiji is dead so I can't question his reasons but I can guess my father told him to keep it a secret, the villagers were in mourning and clouded by anger, Jiraiya probably had his own duties to deal with... I have nobody to blame and I hate it!" He growled out, as Haku gently placed a hand on his cheek and turned his head towards her.

"Then just let it go, you can't change what's happened but you also can't let it get to you... it isn't good for you or those close to you." She said warmly, making sure to gently force him to look her right in the eyes. All he could see in them was affection and care, and they quickly drained away any anger that was left over.

"I never did understand it..." The blond started, as Haku hummed questioningly. "...I never did understand how you were able to get over Zabuza's death so easily." He was unsure about bringing this up, but it was always clawing at the back of his mind. She had been so close to the man, openly admitting herself as a tool to the man yet she barely mentioned him after the day they 'interrogated' her.

"You want to know why?" Haku asked with a serene smile that only seemed to brighten as she paused to let him think about it. "...I was able to get over it, because I had _you_ to keep me company. You spoke to me of your own choice, you kept me sane and gave me a new home along with a new purpose to live... you gave me everything I needed... and more." By the end of the sentence she had leaned almost completely into him, their faces basically touching. Naruto let a warm smile of his own spread across his whiskered face as he leaned against her forehead.

"You want to know something too Haku-chan?" Naruto asked, as the girl's eye became half-lidded with interest. "...all those things were the best decisions I've ever made." He honestly believed what he said. This girl was probably the best thing to happen to him in... he didn't even know something that could compare to her. She was like an angel (hence the nickname) sent to brighten his life in all ways possible.

He was becoming all the more certain that he was growing to not just adore, but love the girl he was happily in a relationship with. They were both young, still a little naïve in some respects and both were hardly accustomed to feeling emotions like love but the feelings she could bring from him were the strongest and warmest feelings he'd experienced in his relatively grim life up until he became a Genin. He didn't think he was quite in love with her quite yet, but he was definitely close to being such if he wasn't already.

Haku's heart and mind leapt at the declaration. The boy she found herself so enamoured with was openly admitting to her that he believed saving her and bringing her back to the leaf along with entering a relationship with her were the best decisions he'd made. There was little more that could be said, other than she couldn't have been much happier at the current moment. Despite the sincerity and care that were obvious in the statement, she felt the need to hear him reaffirm it.

"Do you really mean that?" She asked, still awestruck that he'd said it in the first place. Naruto simply grinned foxily at her, pulling back from their current head-to-head contact to place his hand under her chin to steady her head towards him.

"I meant every word. You – Haku Yuki – are the best thing that's ever happened to me." He assured the girl, who began to tear up at the words before hugging him softly but with obvious affection and warmth.

"Thank you... I feel the same way, without you I'd have given up by now..." The girl replied with a very distinct sniffle. Naruto smiled reassuringly at this, having realised a while back that Haku – despite her ability to act very Shinobi-like – was a rather emotional girl. She seemed to get quite tearful – in a good way – during a lot of their conversations.

"Don't go saying things like that... you won't be without me, just like I won't be without you." Naruto was glad she was so endeared to him for what he'd done for her, and it certainly made him feel like he was in the clouds to know that she held him in such high regard but that didn't mean he liked to hear her doubting herself. She was a strong girl and she'd probably do fine without him.

"I know, it's just... I can't help but worry." Haku admitted, making Naruto frown slightly. He didn't break the embrace to avoid her seeing his expression but he could understand her worry, it was a lot more rational than his own worry about her safety... at the end of the day he was the one with enemies, not her.

"I get why you're worried, but I promise you I won't let anyone take me from you." Naruto said reassuringly, as she tightened her hold on him a little, a smile having broken out across her face. "...well, I think that's enough of that." He said suddenly, pulling back slowly making the girl pout.

"Geez, ruin the moment." The girl muttered just loud enough for Naruto to hear, making him let out a small laugh at her reaction. It was quite amusing to see how she would react to certain things; like a small game that he played with himself.

"I have work to be done, I'm sure you can understand." Naruto said with amusement, as Haku just huffed in response before walking off towards a nearby tree before jumping up onto a branch and pulling out a book. _'She's always reading... I wonder what it is she reads.'_ The blond thought to himself idly.

He then shook his head at the thought, realising that he had work to be done. He had researched the Yondaime – along with most of the Hokage – during times of boredom, and he learned the **Rasengan **took 3 whole years to create. It was obviously a difficult technique, so the sooner he started on it the better... though the fact he was training with a water balloon made him feel like an idiot.

He picked up the water balloon he'd been given before looking it over a little for no other reason than curiosity. He wondered just what he was supposed to be doing, since he hadn't really given Jiraiya time to explain the entire exercise. He thought back to the way the man had worded it though, and it did help clear it up.

Based simply off the description Naruto could hazard a guess on what he was meant to be doing. If it centred on rotation alone, that wouldn't be enough to pop the balloon so he must need to create some sort of spherical shape. If it followed the trend set by the tree and water walking exercises then he'd obviously need to push a steady stream of chakra through his palms until the desired effect was reached.

He held out his arm with the balloon in his hand before narrowing his eyes on it, pouring chakra through his palm and into the inside of the balloon. There was an instant effect, as the balloon began to convulse steadily; the pressure causing the balloon and the water contained within to become destabilised.

He raised an eyebrow as he continued to channel chakra into the balloon, not much more than the current effect happening. It was clear that this might take a while, so Naruto sighed and sat down. He continued to channel the chakra, and eventually began to test different methods of doing so. He would increase the density and strength of the chakra, the rotation speed and whatnot... but it was clear he needed a little more focus. After an hour or two he began to get bored, so he decided to break down the task a little.

_'OK, let's think objectively. I need rotation, but somehow a simple rotation needs to burst the balloon... steady rotation in a single direction won't really accomplish much... unless...' _The blond thought to himself as he had an epiphany. It was actually kind of obvious now. _'Ah of course, multiple rotations are necessary to create a grinding effect similar to how wind chakra usage. This would increase the lethality of the technique, so it makes perfect sense.' _ He concluded to himself, as he held out his palm again and began to create several flows of chakra in separate directions, making the balloon stretch and convulse violently before bursting... which unfortunately showered him.

"Dammit! I'm soaked again!" He shouted, instantly earning a feminine laugh from behind him.

_'Damn her...'_

**-With Sasuke-**

If Sasuke was being honest with himself he was somewhat joking when he said he had nothing to do back in Konoha, but it was now completely clear that he was being more accurate than he originally thought. He literally had _nothing_ to do... well, besides training anyway. Then he thought back to what Naruto had said.

_'I know he wasn't exactly being serious, but maybe I should do some socialising...'_ Sasuke thought to himself, before shaking his head in defeat. _'Why do I get the feeling this is going to end badly for me?'_ The very thought of socialising brought a small shiver to him. Maybe it was because of the rather isolated lifestyle that he'd taken up after the Uchiha massacre, but he wasn't really comfortable with being social. His teammates seemed to be the exception, maybe the shared battle experience made them come together; to grow more comfortable around one another.

"Hmm... I have no idea where anybody would be right now, not to mention I don't really know who to look for besides Sakura and she'd probably be around Ino..." Sasuke mused aloud, as he suppressed a shiver at the thought of Ino. Sure, she was rather pretty, but she was loud and very annoying more often than not... it just irritated the young Uchiha to no end to have her fawn over him. He wanted a good woman to help him rebuild his clan, not some fan-girl bending over for him.

He sighed as he shook off the thought. He knew that he probably wouldn't be finding any sort of lover anytime soon, since he was still too caught up on his Shinobi career and the idea of killing Itachi still made him want to jump at the nearest power source... though he had made leaps and bounds suppressing that instinct.

Though he would never say it aloud, he was very thankful to have been placed on Naruto and Sakura's team. They had helped turn him into a better person, they helped him to forget his grief and realise what he was ignoring... which was life itself. Revenge – while still clawing at the back of his mind – was making him overlook living his life, experiencing the joys of being with others. His somewhat moody and uncaring attitude wasn't quite gone, nor would it likely ever be... but it was strangely refreshing to know his life didn't have a singular purpose anymore.

The boy was currently at his home, reading over a small manual on **Raiton** Ninjutsu and general ways to manipulate lightning natured chakra. It was rather interesting to see how those more experienced than him had managed to make the school of Ninjutsu into something more personal. The Raikage's Nintaijutsu was a rather interesting one, using **Raiton no Yoroi (Lightning Release Armour) **to increase his speed and reflexes to essentially create a Ninjutsu-based Taijutsu style.

It seemed Kumogakure had the monopoly on **Raiton** Ninjutsu generally, since they had access to the famed **Kuroi Kaminari (Black Lightning)**, along with having the highest ratio of **Raiton** users in comparison to the other chakra natures. Then there was the **Ranton** **Kekkei Genkai**, which was both interesting and unique, allowing the user to manipulate a malleable water-like substance that was seemingly capable of directed aiming after being utilized.

All-in-all, it seemed as though he had a lot to learn if he wanted to become powerful, since Kumogakure Shinobi had a large advantage in regards to **Raiton** Ninjutsu. It was rather fortunate that he was on Kakashi's team, since he was one of the only noteworthy people in Konoha with a lightning affinity. He already had a few ideas of how to personalize the **Chidori**, so he had something to do for a while... though he hoped the village could get out of the state of panic it was in so he could go on another mission.

_'Who will the next Hokage be? Out of the elite Jōnin, I'd say Kakashi has the best chance... but I really have no idea.'_ The young Uchiha thought to himself before letting out a snort of laughter. _'Maybe it'll be a girl for once, that would be something.'_ He thought condescendingly. He didn't really entertain the notion of female Shinobi being as strong as males, despite getting his butt kicked by Haku... it was a flaw and he knew it.

He then heard a knock on his door and almost fell out of his seat, since he wasn't expecting anyone to come and see him anytime soon. On instinct, he activated his **Sharingan** before pulling out a Kunai and walking towards the door. With the arrival of Itachi in the village, he wasn't taking any chances anytime soon.

He flung the door open to reveal a familiar red-haired girl with glasses standing in front of the house, looking a little uncomfortable. When she saw the Kunai and his **Sharingan** he could see her muscles tense, which was one of the benefits of having the **Sharingan** in the first place. He put the Kunai down and reverted his eyes back to his normal black ones, which made the girl let out a small breath of relief.

"Sorry about that, I guess I'm a little on edge." Sasuke said casually, looking away to avoid showing his small blush of embarrassment... well, that's what he thought it was anyway. The girl smiled up at him since she was noticeably shorter than he was, before tilting her head in confusion. The action did not help Sasuke's blush whatsoever, since he found it to be – for lack of a better word – adorable.

"Oh, that's alright... sorry if I scared you." Karin stated honestly, upset that she may have scared the boy. Sasuke inwardly laughed that she thought he was afraid of somebody knocking his door, but it was also strangely comforting to know she was concerned for him.

"You didn't scare me, it's fine." Sasuke stated, before blinking as he realised they'd gotten a little off topic. "...so did you need something, and how'd you know where I live anyway?" He asked, curious as to why Karin would be looking for him. The girl blushed a slight pink tinge at the question, since she thought he may have thought she was some sort of stalker.

"I-I d-didn't follow you or anything... I found you by following your chakra!" Karin defended, clearly flustered by the otherwise casual question. Sasuke let out a small chuckle at her defensive attitude, but it was good to know he didn't have _another_ stalker on his hands. _'Oh yeah, she's a sensor...'_ The boy thought to himself, mentally face-palming that he forgot.

"Sorry, I forgot you were a sensor... and I wasn't implying you were stalking me, honest." Sasuke said quickly after he got his chuckle under control. The girl brightened at this; her blush dying down to a less noticeable level.

"Right, well... I came to see if you wanted to talk... or something." The girl asked nervously. Sasuke furrowed his brows at the statement, not really sure why she'd want to talk to him. The obvious reasons would be that she either wanted to get properly acquainted with him or that she didn't have anything better to do, but he was still curious.

"Why would you want to talk to me?" Sasuke asked inquisitively. The girl furrowed her brows questioningly at the question, certain that he was implying that nobody would want to get to know him.

"Is there a reason I shouldn't?" Karin questioned, making Sasuke think for a few moments before finding no answer. "...well if you need reason, you're my Nii-san's friend so I figured I should at least get to know you a little." She said confidently, glad that such a statement sounded believable, since it was much better than 'because I have a big crush on you'.

She wouldn't openly admit it to anyone because it was really weird and somewhat embarrassing, but because her sensory ability gave such a clear image of someone's chakra quality and strength, she actually found herself attracted to people based on their chakra alone.

Both Naruto and Sasuke had rather 'attractive' chakra, but Naruto was out of the question so Sasuke was her main choice at the moment. She wanted to follow Naruto's advice though, ensuring she liked the young Uchiha for his personality and not his chakra and physical attractiveness.

Now Sasuke wasn't the most emotionally perceptive of people, so he couldn't detect the lie she had said nor could he tell that she was discretely glancing over him at certain intervals when he wasn't taking notice. If he had his **Sharingan** still active he would've noticed instantly, but without it he wasn't quite so perceptive. He let a small smile cross his face at her answer, finding himself to be glad that he would spend some time with the strange girl.

"That sounds fine to me..." Sasuke said with a strange level of warmth, which was mirrored in the girl's face. "...I don't suppose you had some sort of plan when you came here?" He asked calmly, as he noticed her face fall a little. In truth, she hadn't really thought it out but it was clear that she probably should've.

"I'll take that as a 'no'... well, come in if you like." Sasuke stated, before moving into his house. Karin smiled and began to walk in after him but was stopped by his extended arm. "...no shoes." He affirmed, making the girl nod before taking off her footwear. Sasuke then led her to his living room, before stopping.

"You thirsty?" The Uchiha asked, getting a nod in response. "...alright, I'll be right back... take a seat." He continued, before walking off into his kitchen... or at least that's where Karin assumed he was going. She sat down stiffly, a little nervous about being in Sasuke's home. She wasn't really used to being invited into someone's home, and since she was in the home of her crush that made it all the more awkward.

_'OK... just talk, that's easy enough right? Nothing needs to happen right now, just talk...'_ Karin reassured herself mentally, with a minor level of success. She eased into her seat right as Sasuke came back into the room with a glass of water. She gave him a meek smile while taking the glass, as Sasuke stared at her for a few moments.

"Is something wrong? You seem uncomfortable." Sasuke asked with concern. He didn't know her very well – if at all – but he still found himself caring about her in some small way, though he chalked it down to her being the sister of his best friend. Even though they weren't technically related that closely (if at all) it was what you thought of someone that was most important.

The concern in his voice and the look on his face made Karin feel infinitely better, it was strange but she knew that it felt very good. The way he was staring intently at her made her feel heat rise in her cheeks as she was sure a predominant blush across her face, but she didn't particularly care. She gulped and took a sharp intake of breath before turning away meekly.

"I... I-I'm f-fine." She stuttered out, though her rampaging heartbeat could easily disprove that statement. She was sure at this point that Sasuke would be able to hear her heart thrashing around in her chest, since she could feel the intensity very passively.

Sasuke could tell something was wrong. He may not have been the best with emotions – or girls for that matter – but he also wasn't an idiot, he could tell Karin was either nervous, uncomfortable, scared or something along those lines. He wasn't sure whether to press her for an answer or not, but he felt as though he should make an attempt to calm her down.

"There's no need to lie to me..." Sasuke said softly, as he sat down next to her. "...you can trust me." He placed his hand atop her own on pure instinct, as he felt her twitch slightly from the contact before she seemed to relax into it. She then lightly lidded her eyes and gave him a beautiful smile before shaking her head.

"It's nothing, really... but thank you for trying to help." The red-head said gratefully. This hadn't exactly gone how she'd planned up until now due to her own damn nervousness, but the fact that he'd reacted to it so warmly and comfortingly was giving her the answers she needed regardless. He was obviously a nice guy, and she was looking forward to seeing more of him if possible.

"Alright, but you can tell me if you need to." Sasuke replied, though he was a little unhappy she wouldn't tell him. He wasn't anywhere near as oblivious as Naruto but he also wasn't used to girls acting shy with their affection, rather than being loud and brazen with their... interest... in him. This was proving to be a new experience, not that he realised quite yet. "...so, did you have anything specific in mind you wanted to talk about?" He asked, not really sure how to start this conversation.

"Well... I guess we could say our likes and dislikes..." She replied uncertainly, not having planned any of the conversation after going to see him... she really needed to plan better. The look of amusement on Sasuke's face told her that she'd been found out.

"What, you mean like the Genin introductions?" He asked mockingly, making Karin cross her arms in a pout. _'Damn, Konoha does those too!'_ She thought to herself with annoyance. Sasuke just shook his head at her antics before preparing his 'introduction'.

"Well, my name is Sasuke Uchiha. I like taking walks, training and messing with Naruto and Haku, though they sorta turned that around on me recently." Sasuke said with a sheepish tone, making Karin laugh at him.

"You messed with Nii-san and his girlfriend?" She asked through small bouts of laughter. Sasuke nodded at her smugly as she calmed herself down. "...what did you do?" She asked, as Sasuke placed a finger to his chin.

"I would always imply they were fooling around when they wandered off together, and generally point out how close they always were... though it only really worked on Haku since Naruto was really oblivious to her back then." He answered carefully, as Karin let out a small snort of laughter at the idea of Naruto being really oblivious about his feelings.

"Was he really that bad?" The red-haired girl questioned.

"You would be surprised, he was probably the most oblivious person I'd ever met." Sasuke said with honesty. If Naruto had been any worse he'd probably have died alone, since he wouldn't even realise someone had feelings for him even if they said it to his face. Karin smirked, now having something to mock the blond with.

"Thanks for the information, I can use this to my advantage." Karin said deviously, making Sasuke smirk as well. It would be so much fun to have multiple people messing with the blond at the same time.

"Good, now where was I..." He started, as he leaned back in his seat. "...my dislikes are sweet foods, fangirls, loud people and I hate my brother." For the most part Sasuke had come to terms with the death of his family, so he wasn't afraid to bring up the subject anymore. It was still painful to remember but he could manage.

Karin bit her lip in indecision when she heard Sasuke bring up her brother, since Naruto had stated rather surely that she shouldn't bring up his family or it would 'bum him out'. Therefore, the rather open statement about his brother made her want to question it but she knew she probably shouldn't. Sasuke noticing this, gave her a small smirk.

"Someone told you not to bring up my family, so who was it?" This question caught the girl off guard, since she was sure she wasn't being that obvious with her facial expressions and general body language. Then she noticed Sasuke's **Sharingan** were active. "...you can't hide much from these eyes, Karin." The young Uzumaki immediately sighed at the statement, since she had the idea he was a little too proud of his eyes.

"It was Nii-san who told me not to bring it up." The admission made Sasuke hum in thought before a small smile broke out across his features as he closed his eyes in thought before speaking.

"That guy is much too selfless... though I'll admit his ability to be ruthless often surprises me." Karin furrowed her brows at the statement, not really believing that Naruto could be ruthless... though the way they met could've led someone to believe such a thing since both of her teammates were knocked out with little warning.

"What exactly do you mean?" She questioned, as Sasuke opened his eyes to see her strong stare being directed at him. He raised an eyebrow, wondering if she was expecting to intimidate him before letting off a shrug and speaking.

"Well, it's just that he's usually nice and concerned about the safety and well being of everyone but him, but when he's mad he can do things you wouldn't expect..." The rather vague statement made Karin wonder what he meant, but she didn't need to think for long. "...y'know Sakura was in a coma right?" He asked, getting a nod. "...well, the man who put her into it stabbed her in the stomach with a sword... saving me... but then Naruto just killed him in a second." As expected, Karin looked shocked, not having expected Naruto to be so ruthless... though she hadn't exactly asked him if he'd ever killed anyone so it was her own fault really. Seeing her expression, Sasuke decided to put his two cents in.

"I think he did it on instinct though, because he killed him with his **Kekkei Genkai** and that was the first time he ever used it. He hasn't even used the technique he used to kill the man since then, because he doesn't know how." Sasuke said, before falling silent and waiting for her reaction.

"Well as surprising as that is I can't blame him if the man hurt Sakura... besides, killing is a part of being a Shinobi... unfortunately." Karin stated sadly, as Sasuke lightly gripped her shoulder. She smiled over at him before he decided to speak again.

"We've gotten a little off topic here... where was I?" He asked sheepishly, as she let out a small laugh before replying.

"I think you were about to say something about your family, or move on to dreams." This made Sasuke furrow his brows, since he didn't really know what his dreams were anymore... was killing Itachi a dream or just something he would do if presented with the opportunity?

"Well the reason I hate my brother is because he slaughtered my entire clan... don't try to make me feel better because you're a few years late for that." Sasuke stated calmly, as Karin had to suppress the urge to comfort him in some way. She couldn't imagine what it would be like to have your entire family torn away... especially by your own sibling. If Naruto had done such a thing to her she probably never would've gotten over it.

"I don't know how that must've felt... but if it makes you feel any better you can talk to me about it, if you want to." This made Sasuke smile gratefully, since he never truly had the opportunity to talk about the massacre... mostly because he didn't want to, but it was refreshing to have the option on the table.

"I may take you up on that one day..." He replied honestly, making her smirk. "...now dreams... well my dreams used to be to kill my brother and rebuild my clan, but now killing my brother is something I'll do if given the opportunity, rather than an objective... now, it's your turn." He stated, before a smirk broke out as he told her to go. She smiled a little before starting.

"I'm Karin Uzumaki. I like taking walks as well, strangely enough... I also like reading and collecting perfumes." Karin said cheerfully, as Sasuke took on an amused by confused expression.

"Collecting perfumes?" Sasuke asked, as Karin huffed lightly before crossing her arms.

"Hey, I didn't judge the things you like!" She defended, though she was a little embarrassed since it wasn't exactly a common thing people liked to do. Sasuke held up his hands in a placating gesture which caused the girl to calm down before continuing.

"Anyway... I dislike people with disgusting chakra quality, perverts, people who don't mind their own business and spiders... I hate spiders." The girl stated irritably, obviously having some experience with her dislikes. Sasuke gained a devious smirk before speaking.

"Oh? Then that spider on your back probably shouldn't be there..." As if on cue, Karin sprung to her feet and began to try and hit off the imaginary spider on her while Sasuke suppressed his laugh, before he eventually couldn't contain it and burst out laughing. Karin finally noticed what was happening and turned scarlet red before a look of anger crossed her cute face.

"Hey! That wasn't funny Sasuke!" She bellowed at the boy, who was still struggling to control his laughter. This did little to help her anger as she began comically punching his arm while he cowered slightly, still laughing. He eventually stopped laughing and managed to push her off him.

"I'm sorry... I just couldn't resist." The boy stated. Karin laughed as she pictured how she must've looked to the boy, so she couldn't really fault the joke.

"Alright you got me... now dreams. Hmm, well I guess I'd like to master Fūinjutsu to honour my clan and to... have a family of my own one day." The declaration made Sasuke smile, since both were admirable goals to him. To honour her clan was a similar thing he wanted to do, and to have a family was reflected in his goal to rebuild his clan since he required children to do so. It all seemed... meant to be.

"We seem to be quite alike... _just like Naruto and Haku..._" Sasuke stated, thinking the last part to himself. It was a little convenient really. Karin blushed at the fact that Sasuke claimed they were similar, though she was mostly able to control her expression.

"I guess so..." She said somewhat absently, as the two just sat in silence for few moments before the conversation began to drag on in a different direction. It was clear to the both of them that they were very comfortable with the other by the time the day was done and Sasuke was nowhere near as foolish as Naruto, so he could guess why. After a few hours the two had finished talking and Karin was preparing to leave.

"I guess I'll see you around, Sasuke." Karin claimed with a large smile, having greatly enjoyed her time speaking to him. Sasuke shared her sentiments and smiled for what seemed like the millionth time that day, which was a weird concept for him.

"Yeah, bye Karin." He replied, and was barely even able to move before she very daringly kissed him on the cheek before running off with a very distinct blush. Sasuke sighed as he walked into his house and closed the door.

"Crap, I have a crush on Naruto's sister... why do I feel this is a common problem?"

**-Back with Naruto-**

After changing clothes and sufficiently drying off, under the watchful and strangely attentive eye of his lover Haku, Naruto was next to the girl on a branch of a tree. She had been reading up there all day and frankly the blond was curious exactly what she was doing... so imagine his surprise when he saw what she was reading.

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me." Naruto exclaimed, clearly annoyed by what he was seeing. Haku giggled cutely, lightly pushing against his arm in a playful manner as she turned back to what they were currently focused on.

"Hey, don't make assumptions... the writing is actually quite good." She answered critically, making Naruto sigh at her antics before gaining a tick mark and turning to stare right at her face, which she had to admit made her sweat a little.

"I thought you told me not to be a pervert?" He retorted, making her sigh as she closed the book.

"Are you trying to say _I'm _a pervert?" She asked with a dangerously calm tone, though Naruto wouldn't fall for it. He continued his stare, which was now looking almost comically inquisitive.

"Look at what you're readying!" He exclaimed in response, as she blushed lightly before turning away.

"Hey, there is nothing wrong with reading these books." She defended with her arms crossed, refusing to meet his gaze. Naruto face-palmed at her very annoying attitude at the moment, having finally found something he knew he would dislike about her.

"Is this why you're trying to be so... intimate... recently?" The blond enquired calmly, as her blush magnified exponentially.

"N-No! I-is there s-something wrong with me trying to be close to you?" Haku defended, clearly panicked by the question. Naruto saw right through the lies though, and his demanding gaze continued to close the distance between their faces until she was mostly pinned to the tree.

"Haku-chan... don't you lie to me..." Naruto said knowingly. "...you know I can see right through you." He continued, as he stared directly into her eyes before she pushed him back lightly before sighing.

"OK! Maybe I... took one or two things for... inspiration." The Yuki admitted meekly. Naruto smiled victoriously before pulling her into his lap, brushing his hand over her cheek.

"Was that so hard?" He asked warmly, as she sighed before shaking her head. "...but you realise that is basically porn, right? How did you even get that?" The girl thought it over for a few moments before lying against him with a slight frown.

"Well I suppose you _could_ think of it as porn... but Icha Icha does have good writing! I don't pay much attention to the... uh... intimate scenes." She said adamantly, as the book now revealed to be one of Jiraiya's adult books was picked up by Naruto who looked over it carefully.

"It says 18 and over... I think that classifies." The blond stated plainly, as Haku sighed before crossing his arms.

"You wouldn't be complaining if I showed you what I read, would you Naruto-_kun_~" Haku said seductively, as Naruto gulped before shaking his head and giving her a knowing glare once more.

"That's not going to help me believe it isn't porn Haku-chan..." Naruto implied, as Haku face-faulted. Then a blush came over his otherwise serious face. "...but feel free to hold on to that train of thought." Haku took on a look of surprise at this, but it was quickly replaced by a playful smirk.

"If you insist, Naruto-_sama_." Haku chirped, before giving him a quick kiss which made the blond smile warmly.

"Was that from one of the books?" He asked curiously. Haku just giggled, her smirk continuing all the way.

"You'll see..." She said, lowering herself to kiss him with more passion that previously. As the two were melding their lips to the other, Naruto couldn't help but have one last thought.

_'I think I can forgive Jiraiya...'_

**-****End-**

**Yep, finally decided to do some other POVs, though I basically need to after adding Sasuke to the main character list.**

**Naruto should – by nature – be good with shape transformation. Shōton is almost completely based around creating shape with chakra, so I figured the Rasengan is child's play for a Shōton user.**

**Anyway... Review, Favourite and/or Follow.**

**LiamMorg. Out.**

**Ja Ne!**


	20. Chats and Challenges

**I don't own Naruto... if I did I would rule the world at this point. Everyone bow down to our lord Kishimoto, he who giveth the blond Shinobi and taketh away Pain.**

**Since canon is so damn unspecific, I will assume Tsunade is in a different town to the one they are currently in, since I don't recall a castle being in the 'hole'.**

**Quote of the chapter/day: "Love is not something to take for granted, because it can be taken away in a moment. Cherish those you love and you will have no regrets."**

**Chapter 19: Chats and Challenges**

**-Last Chapter-**

"_Was that from one of the books?" He asked curiously. Haku just giggled, her smirk continuing all the way._

"_You'll see..." She said, lowering herself to kiss him with more passion that previously. As the two were melding their lips to the other, Naruto couldn't help but have one last thought._

_'I think I can forgive Jiraiya...' _

**-Start-**

I had been a little while since Naruto had finished the first step of his training for the Rasengan, which is why he was simply sitting around waiting for Jiraiya to return. Now that he'd sufficiently calmed down and got his mind rolling in the more logical direction he felt like he and Jiraiya could properly discuss the little issue they had at the moment.

He wouldn't pass judgement before asking, but if Jiraiya's reasoning for leaving him alone for 13 years and keeping his heritage from him all this time wasn't good enough, he wouldn't simply forgive him. No, the man would regret the decision. Shaking such dark thoughts from his otherwise pure mind, he began to start playing around with his **Sh****ō****ton**. Outsiders would've taken this as a sign that he took the rare power for granted, but it was simply too fun to leave alone!

If the blond could say anything, it was that the **Sh****ō****ton** had a nearly inexhaustible variety of uses. It was almost impossible to _not_ find new things to use it for. He'd started with simple, inelegant masses of crystals that had very little usage in battle, then he'd moved on to small but still complex crystal Shuriken, then onto something which could be considered a crystal exoskeleton, then onto complex Tantō-like blades that formed on the wrists. He _still _got the impression that there was plenty more to use too!

It just seemed like the bloodline was too useful, too diverse. There were very few ways to defeat the **Sh****ōton** that didn't involve simply being stronger than the user, since the diversity made it nearly impossible to find a work-around. That said, the blond couldn't help but think he was overlooking some fatal flaw with it that would end up biting him in the ass later on.

The best part of the **Shōton **was that it made **Doton** almost useless, the only techniques worth using now were mud-based since the **Shōton** couldn't replicate those, but it could replicate just about anything else. It unfortunately meant that training his rather strong **Doton** affinity was for the most part a pointless exercise though... still, it wouldn't hurt to train it just in case crystal based techniques were ineffective for whatever reason.

"Where is that pervert?" The blond muttered as he lay back against a tree, before a small hum came from beside him. He tilted his head ever so slightly to see Haku looking at him, apparently having hummed simply so he would turn to see her shrug. He chuckled at the plain answer, but he couldn't exactly fault her since _he _was the sensor of the group. Then a thought came to mind.

"Why do we even need to look for traces of Tsunade when I can just use sensory to find her? If I recall correctly the Senju Clan have very distinct chakra." Naruto said, his eyes having widened as he realised that this trip could be shortened rather easily if he kept a close eye on nearby chakra signatures. Haku furrowed her brows before placing a finger to her chin.

"Would that even work?" She asked, as Naruto turned his attention to her. "... I'll admit you _are_ a pretty good sensor, but there are a lot of people in these towns." This made Naruto close his eyes in thought, since he didn't have much experience in locating specific chakra signatures. Granted, he managed to find Jiraiya in Konoha but the man was pretty close by and he'd already memorised the man's chakra signature.

"You have a good point, I'm not sure... maybe we should just keep doing what we are." Naruto answered. He wasn't entirely sure if he'd be able to pick out a chakra signature he wasn't acquainted with – no matter how distinctive – out of a large crowd. Haku smirked at his reaction, knowing just how to get his head in the game.

"Oh? Starting to doubt ourselves?" The Yuki asked, making Naruto chuckle at her jab. Then a thought came to mind that he'd forgotten, the woman was also a descendant of the Uzumaki Clan. Tsunade was the granddaughter of both Hashirama Senju and Mito Uzumaki, so her chakra signature wouldn't be completely alien to him.

"Actually no, she's at least part Uzumaki." The blond stated, as he let out a whistle at the implications. _'Inheriting the traits of the Uzumaki and the Senju clan... her chakra would probably be a torch in the shadows.'_ The thought was based off the fact that both clans were known for strong life force and large chakra capacities, so she must have enough to be easily locatable. She was no Uzumaki Jinchūriki of Kurama, but she would be close enough.

"Really? So you'd know her rough chakra signature then?" Naruto nodded instantly at the question, since he was almost certain he'd be able to detect her. There was no chakra signature a person was more knowledgeable of than his own, and as such his family or clan.

"I'm pretty certain, since I'm only half Uzumaki myself... if you want to be technical." He said wisely, not bothering to sugar coat it. Since his mother was an Uzumaki born in Uzushiogakure, he could only assume she was born of two Uzumaki parents, but that was simply not within the scope of his knowledge to know for sure. If she was born of only one Uzumaki parent, that would make him only ¼ Uzumaki. _'Eh, semantics...' _He thought to himself as he realised he was getting way off topic.

"I guess that makes sense..." The girl replied, before another thought interrupted her. "...so what are you going to do when Jiraiya gets here?" The question, while not exactly expected did not surprise the blond. He knew he'd have to deal with Jiraiya and the only question was how he'd handle it. He was used to using both his mind and heart, but situations like this could make one override the other... so he'd need to be logical if he wanted to keep a level head.

"I will confront him about why he wasn't around for me and why he kept my heritage and his role in my life a secret. If the answer is not to my liking... I will probably cut ties with him." Haku's eyes widened as he finished the sentence, she had not expected Naruto to have so serious a reaction to this despite how important it was.

"But... he's still your godfather." She defended, but Naruto wouldn't accept that in and of itself. He shook his head firmly, disregarding the statement with clear distaste.

"To be given the role of a godfather is a responsibility and an opportunity, not a tool to be employed when the individual wants to get away with something. A useless and deceitful godfather means less to me than a trustworthy stranger." Naruto retorted without a trace of anything but seriousness. Haku couldn't help but agree with his logic, but she still didn't want Naruto to end his relationship with the man so quickly after his true identity was revealed.

"Nevertheless..." Naruto started abruptly after a few moments of silence. "...this is all irrelevant until I hear his answer." He said softly. He could read Haku like an open book and the distress he could see in her expression made it clear she didn't want him to cut ties with the person that was likely the only family link he had left... besides Karin that is, but she may not even be that closely related to him to count.

The small smile that rose across her face was the answer he needed, and it made him feel at ease to know that she wouldn't worry about it any longer. The only bad part about holding great affection for another is that you couldn't be truly happy if they weren't; you couldn't help but feel their distress.

"That's good to hear..." She said, though her smile quickly fell. "...that is, if he ever shows up." Naruto promptly laughed at her statement before he realised what such a thing could mean. He frowned sadly as he thought it over a little before he turned to Haku, worry evident in his eyes.

"Do you think... I hurt him with what I said?" The blond asked slowly, as Haku lowered her head to avoid eye contact with him.

"I... don't know... maybe..." The black-haired girl replied, uncertainty in her tone. "...but I'm sure he's fine, if anything he probably just feels guilty." The answer made Naruto hum slightly in agreement, since Jiraiya certainly _looked_ guilty when he left. Sighing, he closed his eyes and Haku leaned into him a little.

"Well he better show up soon, I'd prefer not to sleep out here."

* * *

><p>Despite Naruto's claim, sleeping was exactly what ended up happening. Through boredom the young lovers ended up simply drifting off for an hour or two before something decided to abruptly wake them up. Naruto felt something prodding against his chest and groaned slightly, throwing a hand over his eyes as he began to shift.<p>

"What? Trying to sleep here..." The blond muttered dreamily, having been dreaming about a possible future. It wasn't completely abnormal for one to picture their future through dreams, but it was still nice to savour them... assuming they depict a good future.

"I can see that." A familiar male voice stated with amusement. Naruto opened his eyes tentatively to see the man he'd been waiting for.

"Geez, you took a while to come back." The Uzumaki said as Jiraiya shrugged, obviously downtrodden.

"Well I was under the impression you didn't want me to come back." The white-haired man stated, trying to hide how hurt his tone was. Naruto let out an almost inaudible sigh at the reply, it was hard to feel sorry for the Jiraiya when he hadn't heard the man's answer.

"Touché. I guess I overreacted a little, but we aren't done talking." The blond stated seriously, now completely focused and awake. He looked over at Haku who was still sleeping and shook his head on the innocent look on her face. _'She doesn't need to be awake for this...' _ The thought made Naruto shift her so she was laying against the tree, rather than him before he stood up.

"I guessed as much... so what do you need to know?" The man asked, as they began to walk a few paces away from Haku so she wouldn't wake up from their discussion. Naruto's expression hardened as he crossed his arms and stared right at the man.

"Why my godfather neglected his duties for 13 years and why you decided to keep my heritage from me." The blond issued sternly, as Jiraiya closed his eyes and took a thinking pose. Naruto stood motionlessly as he waited, not giving away any distinct body language.

"You probably don't know this, but I am in charge of a spy network for Konoha. It takes up a very large chunk of my time and after the Kyūbi attack the village wasn't prepared for proper information gathering, so that for the large part was left to me..." The man stated seriously, before his expression turned more guilt-ridden. "...I guess I just settled into it and repressed my other duties to drown out my grief from losing my student and all the others who died during the attack." He finished, as Naruto hummed before falling silent. After a few moments his stance became more casual.

"I can accept that. You had responsibilities and you were mourning your student, my father..." Naruto stated, before he narrowed his eyes inquisitively. "...though that doesn't explain why you kept it from me after you finally met me." The man slightly shrunk from the question, but didn't refrain from answering.

"I thought you might hate me for leaving you for so long... so I thought it would be best to wait." Jiraiya stated, making Naruto nod. It was an understandable reaction, most people would likely become very upset to learn they had a godfather when they were 13 years old, but he wasn't most people.

"The only reason I could hate you would be if you were a completely irredeemable person, which I don't think you are... for now." Naruto retorted teasingly. Jiraiya smiled from the more friendly attitude they had entered, glad that the boy wouldn't completely reject him.

"Well I'm so pleased I'm not completely useless in your eyes..." The man stated with mock sarcasm. "...now then, the reason I didn't tell you who your father was is because... well frankly I thought you may not be ready to know." Naruto instantly settled into a light glare as the man inadvertently insulted his ability to accommodate such information.

"I won't pretend I'm not insulted..." Naruto started, as his glare diminished. "...but at least that answer is honest... I'm not happy that you didn't trust me with the information, but I guess it doesn't matter now that I know." He stated professionally. Jiraiya was pleased that his godson didn't hate him but couldn't help but wonder if the boy had lost a significant level of trust in him.

"So... are we... good?" Jiraiya asked carefully. Naruto somewhat shook his head, causing the man to frown.

"We're okay... I wouldn't say good. I won't write you off but you'll have to earn back my trust." Naruto said seriously, making Jiraiya nod in understanding since – quite frankly – it was a better reaction than what he'd been expecting.

"I guess I can understand that... but thanks for giving me a chance." The man said happily. Despite himself Naruto let a smile creep its way across his face at the attitude of the man before he let out a hmph and turned his head to the side.

"Well I can't exactly cut out the only link I have to my parents... whether that link is a weird pervert or not." Naruto said teasingly, causing Jiraiya to laugh heartily as he walked over to the blond and tapped him on the shoulder.

"That's good to hear." The man said truthfully, as Naruto snorted before walking off.

"I finished your exercise, by the way." Naruto stated casually, as Jiraiya's eyes nearly popped out of his head.

"You finished the first step of training for the **Rasengan**... in a day?!" The sage all but shouted, as Naruto looked out through the corner of his eyes to check if Haku was still sleeping. Seeing that she was, he shrugged and created a ball of crystal in his hand that was the rough size and appearance of a **Rasengan**.

"I've never had much trouble with shape manipulation... I bet you can understand why." The blond stated confidently, as he threw the ball towards Jiraiya who caught it before looking it over.

He had to admit, the concept made sense. The **Shōton –** at its basest form – seemed to use chakra and the imagination of the user to create specific forms using crystal. The **Rasengan** was simply very high level chakra shape manipulation, intended to be easy to create without the use of pesky hand signs. Given a little thought it seemed only logical that a wielder of the **Shōton **would be able to learn the **Rasengan** with more ease than a normal individual.

Jiraiya attempted the crush the crystal orb that Naruto had tossed to him, but found it to be very sturdy. He had to assume that it not only shared the natural strength of strong crystal structures but was also reinforced with chakra, but that caused other questions to come to mind... what would happen to the crystal if Naruto were to run out of chakra or die? Would they continue to exist or shatter? He also had no idea what the weakness of such a thing would be, other than intense physical damage.

"I was wondering if you had a plan for finding Tsunade now, because I have one if you don't." Naruto called, as Jiraiya saw him sat back down besides Haku. He ruffled the back of his head somewhat embarrassed, which Naruto took to be a no.

"Not exactly, I was just planning on asking around you know?" The man said quickly, as Naruto let out a small laugh, though it was mostly derisive.

"I'm starting to doubt the validity of you being in charge of a spy network..." The blond retorted honestly, making the man scowl at him. "...my plan is to find her using sensory." He continued, as Jiraiya raised an eyebrow in interest. He had to admit it wasn't a bad plan, but there could be obvious flaws with the idea.

"Are you sure that would work? Sensors usually grow accustomed to specific chakra signatures through experience, but you've never met a Senju." The white-haired man questioned, making Naruto nod at the hypothesis.

"True, but you're forgetting something..." Naruto started, as Jiraiya focused his gaze in interest. "...Tsunade is part Uzumaki." He stated with a grin, making Jiraiya think for a few moments before smirking in return.

"I see your point, this could work." The man declared, as Naruto huffed in slight irritation. _'Of course it'll work, this isn't an estimation...'_ The blond thought to himself, a little too certain his theory was correct. Jiraiya then looked over at Haku before humming in thought.

"Well it's pretty late now, lets go to the hotel and we can get moving tomorrow... you can learn the second stage of the **Rasengan** on the way." Jiraiya asserted, making Naruto nod in affirmation.

"Sounds good... now how do we handle this?" Naruto said, as they both turned to the still sleeping form of Haku. Jiraiya let out a laugh as he began to walk off.

"She's your girlfriend, you deal with her." The man declared, making Naruto face-fault. _'Way to have my back...'_ He thought, as he looked back to Haku. Sighing, he walked over and very carefully picked her up. She stirred a little before easing back into him. Naruto rolled his eyes at her innocence before leaning down and lightly kissing her forehead.

"Jiraiya-sensei!" Naruto whispered loudly. "...hold on, I don't know where the hotel is!" He continued, but the man didn't slow down but rather let out a snort of laughter. Naruto then began to move at a very awkward pace to avoid waking Haku up, as a tick mark appeared on his forehead.

"This isn't helping you to earn my trust back 'ttebayo!"

**-At the Hotel-**

Now at the hotel after a rather awkward walk that involved Naruto having to limp-run through the streets to keep up with Jiraiya, – much to his annoyance since people kept giggling at him – the group of three were in one of the rooms that just so happened to contain no beds at all, but rather multiple sheets laying on the ground with individual covers.

Rolling his eyes at the rather inhospitable room he very gently lay Haku down on one of the sheets before stopping and squinting his eyes a little. He wasn't entirely sure if she had some sort of sleepwear so he was debating waking her up so she could change, but he really didn't want to risk waking her up. He may not be the best person when it came to girls, but he got the impression they did not like to be woken up.

"Uh... Jiraiya-sensei..." The hushed beckon made the man turn to face the blond. "...should I wake her up? I get the feeling I shouldn't." The small laugh that came from the man's mouth told him all he needed to know.

"You can try, but I'd certainly advise protecting yourself... especially from a girl who likes to use pointy needles." Naruto gulped worriedly as he pictured what Haku could do to him, he had already been made into a porcupine by her once and that was enough to last him a life time.

Then he looked down at her sleeping innocently and a warm smile rose to his cheeks. _'How could something so cute possibly do something like that...' _He thought, as he reached down and lightly shook her arm. When her eyes snapped open and a strangely robotic sound played Naruto instantly regretted the action... since rather than her usual chocolate brown eyes, he was met with shinning red ones.

"Ah... crap."

* * *

><p>"Naruto-kun I already apologised, I don't see what the problem is!"<p>

"You attacked me! With Senbon!

"Well... you shouldn't have woken me up!"

"I woke you up out of courtesy! I thought you might want to change or something..."

"I know you aren't the best when it comes to girls, but waking one up when they're sleeping is _not_ courteous."

"That's what I _thought_, but then I looked over at you and figured 'she's like an angel, she wouldn't brutally attack me'!"

"Would you two shut up?!"

This was how the morning started for the little group of three. After waking up Haku and being chased around whilst being littered with Senbon in various comical locations the girl finally realised what she was doing and calmed down. They then went to sleep with Naruto complaining all the way, and woke up to the conversation they were now in.

Naruto and Haku began to pout childishly as Jiraiya scolded them, each crossing their arms and looking the opposite direction of the other with a 'hmph' sound being shot to the other. After a few moments, a smirk crossing each of their faces as they turned back to face one another.

"Alright if it makes you feel better, I'm sorry for attacking you with Senbon..." Haku stated with clear amusement, as Naruto chuckled and grabbed her hand.

"It's alright, maybe I shouldn't have woken you." Naruto retorted, the smirk still present on their faces. The two then began throwing apologies back and forth while refusing to accept the other's. Jiraiya sweat dropped at the sight before shaking his head. _'These two are impossible...' _He thought as he got up to get dressed.

"Maybe we should get dressed too..." Naruto muttered, as he looked over at Haku who was wearing the same blue robe as he and Jiraiya. "...are you... wearing anything under that?" He asked carefully, though the playful smirk that crossed her face gave him a pretty good idea. She stood up and leaned down close to his ear.

"_Nope_." She whispered in her ear before skipping off. Naruto stared into space for a few moments before a trickle of blood ran down his face from his nose. He quickly wiped it off before coughing into his hand and standing up. _'Mental image: saved.'_ He thought as he walked off to prepare for the day.

He stopped, however when he noticed that nobody else was in the room. Slapping his hand into his face, he walked back into the room before changing quickly. He then walked into the bathroom and quickly washed his face before unsealing his mask and putting it on, before taking it off and resealing it. _'I'll save that for missions... wait, is this a mission? Hmm... I don't think it is... is it? Ah, I don't know!' _He mentally raged, before a rather supportive grunt signaled the beginning of an unwanted conversation.

"_**You're an idiot, you know that?" **_Kurama stated dryly, as Naruto sneered at his own reflection, hoping that the fox would see it.

"_And you are impossible to talk to!" _Naruto said light heartedly, making the fox growl in annoyance at the rather casual atmosphere he'd managed to get into with his container, despite his attempts to do the opposite.

"_**Why must you be so infuriatingly nice to me despite the things I've done?" **_ Kurama asked with genuine interest, though it was covered by a snide tone. Naruto thought about it for a few moments before grinning and giving the fox a small shrug.

"_Like I said before, you may have caused me issues but that doesn't mean I want you to be miserable." _The blond said confidently, as an almost enraged roar came from within his mindscape.

"_**Why not?! I was the one who killed your parents! I was the one that ravaged your village and earned you the hatred of everyone in it! How can you possibly speak to me like a friend?!" **_The fox bellowed angrily, though Naruto was beginning to wonder why the fox seemed to be acting almost... guilty... when the topic came up.

"_Wait a minute." _Naruto said as he closed his eyes and focused.

**-In the Mindscape-**

Naruto opened his eyes to see the dreary sewer-like structure that was his mindscape once more. He sighed, wondering why his mind was depicting something so drab and moody, but now wasn't the time to be worrying about such a thing.

"There's something you aren't telling me isn't there? Something about your attack on the day of my birth." Naruto accused inelegantly, not wanting to drag this on any longer. The fox had been almost always helpful, maybe not nice but he was helpful and it just didn't fit with the stories. The fox was holding something and he was determined to find out what.

"**You are intolerable..."** The fox growled, but Naruto stayed perfectly still and waited. **"...fine, if you really wish to know then you'd better ready yourself because you won't like it." **He continued, as Naruto nodded.

"I desire to know what could possibly make the great Kyūbi seem almost guilty when he speaks of the attack on Konoha." The blond asked seriously, as the fox's confidence diminished noticeably. If the boy could read him this well, he must've gone soft.

"**Your mother was my previous Jinchūriki." **The fox started, as Naruto widened his eyes in surprise. He'd not been informed of this, whether through assumption that he already knew or through more secrecy.** "...during pregnancy, a female Jinchūriki's seal weakens as the body directs more and more chakra to the child. Due to this, pregnancy can be considered the ideal time for a Bijū to escape its host." **He continued, as Naruto attempted to stay neutral.

"So you... broke out of my mother and went on a killing spree?" Naruto asked, his tone beginning to show his anger as he spoke. The fox knew he wouldn't enjoy the conversation, but he was stuck into it now.

"**No. Your father was a sealing master on par with most Uzumaki Clan members... with him there my chances of escape _should_ have been near non-existent..."** The fox spoke, and Naruto could already see where this was going.

"But?" The blond said, urging the fox to get on with it.

"**...but, _he_ showed up... he used you as bait to lure the accursed Yondaime away from Kushina and took her away to get her ready for my release, since the seal was not repaired before he arrived."** The fox continued. Naruto was beginning to see what was happening here but wanted the fox to specify.

"Who is this 'he' you are referring to?" Naruto enquired. The fox growled furiously as he remembered the man.

"**I don't know... however, I'm all but certain that it was Madara Uchiha." **Naturally, Naruto was shocked by the mention of the Uchiha patriarch... not simply because he was alive when he was stated to have died decades ago but also because that meant the Kyūbi attack was not only orchestrated but controlled.

"So... you were under the control of an Uchiha during the space of the attack? And this Uchiha could've been _the_ Madara Uchiha, a man on par with the Shodaime?" Naruto asked worriedly and with interest. The Bijū nodded in affirmation before continuing.

"**I remember very little of the attack after my release, but the next thing I knew I was under attack by countless shinobi before being crushed by that damn toad Gamabunta and whisked away to a more open location where the Yondaime worked with Kushina to seal me into himself and you... but not before I impaled both of them on my claw while attempting to kill you." **Kurama finished, as Naruto was left dumbstruck. The Kyūbi attack was orchestrated, possibly by Madara Uchiha and his parents were probably some of the only people to die because the Kyūbi willingly did so.

"Did you... want me dead?" Naruto muttered, not really having the mental stability at the moment to ask anything more complex. The fox stayed silent for a few moments before replying.

"**I was tired of being sealed... I simply wanted to be free. I saw you on that sealing altar and I knew what was coming..." **Kurama finished, as the two fell into silence. **"...so now you know. I am not something to be befriended. I am Kurama, an ageless beast who will happily kill to be free." **Nothing more was said between the two as Naruto simply turned his back to the beast and lowered his head slightly.

He wouldn't have believed it if it didn't come from Kurama himself, but it seemed as though his unhappiness, the entire reason he was alone and why people hated him was this man... the man who could've been Madara Uchiha. This man had released the beast, used his **Sharingan** eyes to bind the fox to his will and urged the fox to attack the village. The attack was never the fox's idea.

"Would you have done any of that without the intervention of this man, this Madara Uchiha?" Naruto questioned seriously, his back still turned to the beast. The fox just snorted derisively, not believing he needed to answer that.

"**I may be powerful and ancient, but I am not foolish. A single sealing master can imprison me for decades, attacking a great Shinobi village is as close to suicide as a Bijū can get." **Kurama answered wisely, as Naruto nodded and turned around with a small smile.

"Then I forgive you..." Naruto stated honestly, as a look of disbelief crossed the fox's features. "...you were forced into the attack and woke up to find yourself under attack from all angles. Given the circumstances you weren't exactly given time to think clearly... and while you may have killed my parents I hear Bijū extraction is a death sentence anyway so my mother was as good as dead... you were just trying to ensure your freedom, I can't say I'd do any different." He finished, as Kurama was left dumbstruck as well.

"**You... you _forgive _me?" **The fox repeatedly almost mockingly. **"...you forgive the very being that killed your parents out of his own free will?" **He asked disbelievingly, as Naruto nodded with a small frown.

"Like I said, I would've done the same in your shoes. To be attacked by strangers and be threatened with decades of imprisonment... I don't think I would just let it happen either, though I wonder why you didn't just talk to them and inform them what was happening." Naruto said warmly, now convinced that the fox was far nicer than it lead people to believe. It would not seem anywhere near as guilty if it desired his parents dead.

"**We Bijū are chakra constructs, so having our chakra go from being located in a tiny seal to being completely free once more makes us temporarily very... primal. The first and only concern is our own safety until we re-adapt to being in our full form." **Kurama stated, making Naruto nod. It wasn't a feeling he could comprehend but it kinda made sense... it was like having chakra sealed away for years and then suddenly released, you'd need to adapt to having it back.

"I think you're a lot nicer than you let on. I don't know though, maybe you've changed since being sealed in me... maybe you _were_ as evil as people let on, before." Naruto stated, as Kurama actually laughed at him.

"**I am the embodiment of hatred! The only thing I regret is that I was sealed! You think _you_ were able to change me? My hatred is insatiable." **The fox retorting mockingly, but Naruto smiled despite himself. He knew Kurama wouldn't be quite that easy, but he had plans...

"If your hatred is insatiable, then you won't mind if I try to cure you of it." Naruto challenged as the fox snorted derisively.

"**You are free to try, none have or will find success in that regard. " **Kurama stated, before retreating into its cage.

"I will change you Kurama, better to have a partner for life than a prisoner." Naruto asserted, before fading out of the mindscape.

"**I will admit – however – that you are different than other mortals... Naruto." **

**-Back in Reality-**

Naruto woke up with his face feeling noticeably sore... he also noticed he was now on the ground. He sighed at his own stupidity as he realised what had happened. _"Remind me to sit down or something before coming in the mindscape..."_The blond said to Kurama, who grunted in what sounded like acknowledgement. He noticed his nose was bleeding, so he quickly wiped that off before walking out of the bathroom.

Haku and Jiraiya were waiting in the other room and looked at him strangely since there were traces of blood on his face and it looked a little red regardless. Naruto just threw a hand up dismissively, not wanting to get into it.

"So, you took a while... in there." Jiraiya said with confusion. Naruto just shook his head and walked out the door with Haku following after him, but not before giving a static wave to the white-haired sage. "...Geez, ignore me why don't you." The man muttered before following after them.

* * *

><p>The three were now gathered in a small breakfast room, having a quick snack before they got moving. Naruto was thinking over the events of the previous day and how they affected him, since it wasn't every day you learnt of your parents... hell, that would take up a maximum of two days in your entire life... well discounting amnesia and forgetting.<p>

"Something the matter Naruto-kun?" Haku asked casually, Naruto shook his head while taking a bite of a piece of toast.

"Nrrt rehhly" Naruto mumbled, having answered while still eating. Haku gave him a light but scolding slap to the back of the head in return to the gesture while shooting him an irritated glare that he instantly sighed at... well, not before choking on his toast.

"Don't talk with your mouth full." Naruto stifled a laugh at hearing Haku acting live his mother... or wife. He then grinned playfully before taking up a mocking apologetic expression.

"Sorry _Mom_." The blond said jokingly, as Haku just shook her head at him before turning away with a hmph. Naruto sweat dropped at the overly serious attitude, but figured she wasn't a morning person.

"Why must you two pretend I'm not here?" Jiraiya asked with mock hurt tone. Naruto just rolled his head, though a slight smile broke out across his face.

"Maybe because it's more fun?" The young Uzumaki stated, making Jiraiya huff at him. "...oh don't be like that... now since I completed stage 1 of the **Rasengan** training what might stage 2 be?" He continued, as Jiraiya pulled something out of the bag he was carrying before throwing it at the blond. Naruto caught it to find... a rubber ball.

"Stage 2... is power." The sage stated, as Naruto raised an eyebrow before prodding the ball a little. "...you must completely burst that ball with nothing but your chakra, not just a small tear but the entire thing at once." He specified. Naruto looked at it before shrugging, how hard could it be?

**-Later, on the Road-**

"Damn these balls!" Naruto exclaimed, as yet another ball just tore on the side and released all the chakra from the hole. Haku laughed at his misfortune, decided it was entertaining to watch him fail. Jiraiya was outright refusing to give any tips on the technique, since Naruto apparently needed to do it on his lonesome for it to count... not that it made any sense.

"On the bright side, this is _very_ entertaining for the rest of us!" Haku exclaimed a little too gleefully, as Naruto groaned in a mixture of annoyance and boredom. It certainly wasn't entertaining to pick up balls and tear the side of them using chakra, so this task of continually doing such until he did something right was really irritating him. He may have been intelligent, but patience wasn't really his 'thing'.

"Yeah yeah, laugh it up... I never would've guessed bursting a rubber ball with chakra could be so annoying... I'm pretty sure I've been doing this for at LEAST 3 hours." Naruto stated, as Haku put a finger to her chin jokingly before she smirked and nodded in affirmation, making Naruto's body droop as a sigh escaped him once more.

Jiraiya was keeping an eye on Naruto and while he wouldn't say it out loud he was rather impressed by the progress his new apprentice was making. The second step of the **Rasengan **training was probably the hardest for Naruto, since stage 3 would probably be child's play for him and yet even this stage was giving way quite quickly.

His logic was simple: Stage 3 revolved around maintaining the spherical shape while using what he'd learned in the first two steps but like Naruto himself stated, shape manipulation wasn't that hard for him... whether it was due to his **Kekkei Genkai** or not was outside his knowledge.

"You'll get it soon enough, so stop whining and keep trying." Jiraiya said somewhat harshly, but Naruto just sweat dropped rather than feel depressed or insulted.

"Who said I was giving up... and why are you being such a task master? Geez..." The blond said, muttering the last part at a barely audible volume. Haku rolled her eyes at the pair, they had a very unusual relationship, but it was somewhat nice to see them interact for whatever reason. "...Kami, this is going to take a while."

* * *

><p>"Come on, burst!" Naruto ordered, as the balloon began to convulse at a steady rate. "...that's it! Come on..." The balloon seemed ready to burst, before it tore on the side and chakra leaked out the side very rapidly, making Naruto growl in frustration at the balloon.<p>

"I hate you Tou-san..." Naruto muttered, his father's technique giving him far more trouble than he wanted. Haku smirked with almost annoying levels of glee in return.

"How many balloons is that? 30?" Haku asked mockingly, as Naruto groaned at her constant playful mocking.

"Why are you keeping count?!" The blond cried out, as Haku just giggled at his frustration. "...geez, you should be more supportive." He said seriously, trying to get her to help him.

"I am being supportive! If I keep mocking you, you have a reason to finish quickly!" She said confidently, making Naruto slap himself in the face.

"What kind of strangely logical logic is that?!" Naruto shouted at the girl before just groaning and grabbing another balloon, continuing to walk wherever it was they were going.

**-At Tanzaku Town-**

"Dear Kami, I've been doing this for THREE DAYS!" Naruto exclaimed with clear irritation; his hands over his eyes and his head leaned back, as Haku rubbed his back comfortingly. Since the second day she'd given up her mocking, since Naruto clearly wasn't appreciating it.

"Maybe you just need to focus; clear your mind a little." Haku said in a dull manner, not really believing that it would help in the slightest. Naruto's eyes widened as his mind processed the information, metaphorical gears grinding away at the back of his brain. Then a huge smile graced his features as he picked up Haku into a strong hug and twirled her around, much to her secret joy despite her protests.

"You're a genius Haku-chan!" The blond exclaimed as he grabbed another rubbed ball, holding it in a single hand and grabbing his wrist with the other. He then closed his eyes and began to steadily draw out chakra from the Tenketsu in his hand, until the ball burst open. "...YES!" He exclaimed victoriously as Haku looked on with an impressed but confused expression.

"Congratulations, but how exactly did I help?" Haku asked with clear interest, as Naruto smirked at her before raising a hand with a single outstretched finger pointing upwards.

"You said to focus, that's exactly what I needed! I needed to focus the chakra in a single point and build it there, rather than just expelling it all around my palm." Naruto explained cheerfully, having finally completed the rather irritating trial he'd been stuck on for a little while now. Jiraiya let out a hmph of interest, knowing that Naruto had it down.

"Well I wasn't expecting you to have it down anywhere near this fast, at this rate you'll have the whole thing done in less than 2 weeks." Jiraiya stated, making Naruto grin in satisfaction that he was actually learning this faster than expected. If he had to spend another day on the second stage he probably would've gone mad.

"Great, because this technique is not fun to learn!" Naruto exclaimed, as the gates of the next town came into view. "...looks like we're here." He continued, as they all walked into the town. Naruto looked around casually before kneeling down, placing his finger on the ground to see if he could detect Tsunade.

He could definitely detect something similar to what he was looking for, but that was because there seemed to be a lot of chakra gathered in a location not too far away. It was as though somebody had been in a fight or something, expelling a lot of chakra. Naruto furrowed his brows as he picked up another familiar chakra signature along with the one he had recognised, but he couldn't pick them apart enough to remember who it belonged to. It made him realise he would need to train his sensory a little better, since filtering out results was a necessary exercise.

"Do you have her?" Jiraiya asked inquisitively. Naruto opened his eyes and stood up, before holding one of his hands out level to the ground and tilting it side to side to say 'sort of'.

"I have something which _WAS_ her." The blond answered vaguely, making Jiraiya frown at his non-specific answer while Haku just furrowed her brows in confusion.

"What do you mean?" She asked, somewhat cutely as she also tilted her head to match her eyebrows. Naruto had to resist a smile that threatened to rise to his face as he looked over at her, she was too damn cute!

"I mean she must have expelled chakra recently... likely in a fight or something, because there is a sizeable gathering of it nearby, along with another... rather putrid signature." The blond said slowly, his eyes narrowing as he tried to place the other signature.

"So she's nearby? Jiraiya asked calmly, trying to move this conversation along. Naruto nodded slowly, having another little detail to note. The only man of the group groaned at the difficulty they were having for such a seemingly simple task,

"Yes, but I doubt I'll be able to find her since the chakra in the area is taking up basically all of my sensory ability... maybe when it dissipates a little." Naruto said unenthusiastically. Naturally admitting that you were almost useless at any given moment wasn't exactly something you would want to do.

"That's fine I guess... we can just look around a little. In the meantime, I'll tell you what the third and final step for the **Rasengan** is." The white-haired man said wisely. Naruto just nodded and focused intensely upon him. "...the third step is containment, or stability. You must utilize the first two steps within a balloon without the balloon making the slightest movement." He finished, as Naruto inwardly blanched.

"Sounds... fun." Naruto said slowly, making Haku giggle at his misfortune once more before an indignant glare was directed at her. She hid behind Jiraiya and poked her tongue out at him, making him gain a noticeable tick mark as he grabbed yet another balloon. "...let's just... get looking." He continued tiredly.

* * *

><p>After a full day of searching – accompanied by Naruto failing stage 3 of the <strong>Rasengan<strong> – the group of three were ready to call it quits for the day. Naruto had basically forgotten about using sensory in his self-contained misery that he had to learn through such ridiculously annoying methods. Seriously, what kind of person teaches an A-Rank technique based explicitly on chakra shape manipulation with water balloons and rubber balls?!

With that thought aside Naruto noticed they seemed to be heading towards some sort of bar, for some reason or another. Jiraiya probably though it'd be best to drown his sorrows in sake and women, not that the blond would let him... this time. However as they walked in, Naruto noticed a distinct chakra signal within the same bar.

"Well I'll be damned." Naruto muttered, as Jiraiya looked at him in confusion before following his gaze and noticing a blond woman with two ponytails and a rather ridiculously proportioned bust. Haku immediately looked down at herself and an embarrassed blush crossed her face, not that Naruto noticed; too busy staring at the woman. He wasn't even staring out of interest or hormones... he was staring because he couldn't believe they were functioning. How did she live with those?

"There you are!" Jiraiya exclaimed, walking towards the woman who turned to glare at him almost instantly. "...we've been looking for you. We need to talk... Tsunade."

**-****End-**

**Nothing to say, nothing to do~**

**Anyway... Review, Favourite and/or Follow.**

**LiamMorg. Out.**

**Ja Ne!**


	21. The Godaime and the Sannin Showdown

**I don't own Naruto... if I did then there would be some sort of underlying theme about recurring cycles and god-like entities in this story...**

**Quote of the chapter/day: "They say you shouldn't hide your feelings away... but what if what you're feeling is something nobody wants to experience?"**

**Chapter 20: The Godaime and the The Sannin Showdown**

**-Last Chapter-**

_With that thought aside Naruto noticed they seemed to be heading towards some sort of bar, for some reason or another. Jiraiya probably though it'd be best to drown his sorrows in sake and women, not that the blond would let him... this time. However as they walked in, Naruto noticed a distinct chakra signal within the same bar._

"_Well I'll be damned." Naruto muttered, as Jiraiya looked at him in confusion before following his gaze and noticing a blond woman with two ponytails and a rather ridiculously proportioned bust. Haku immediately looked down at herself and an embarrassed blush crossed her face, not that Naruto noticed; too busy staring at the woman. He wasn't even staring out of interest or hormones... he was staring because he couldn't believe they were functioning. How did she live with those?_

"_There you are!" Jiraiya exclaimed, walking towards the woman who turned to glare at him almost instantly. "...we've been looking for you. We need to talk, Tsunade." _

**-Start-**

"Jiraiya?" Tsunade exclaimed in surprise, not expecting to see the man anytime soon. It also didn't help with her other issue... so that was a problem.

After getting over her ridiculously proportioned chest, Naruto took a few moments to take in the appearance of the third member of the Densetsu no Sannin... and he had to admit that she did not give out the 'really strong Shinobi' vibe. She looked – for all intents and purposes – like a normal woman, albeit one who was hiding her age under a transformation.

From the way Tsunade was looking at Jiraiya, it was rather clear that she didn't want to see him... or maybe she just didn't want to deal with Konoha, it was anyone's guess._ 'Well... she certainly doesn't LOOK fifty.' _Naruto thought to himself with an amused but disbelieving expression. The group walked over and joined her in her booth – along with Shizune, her apprentice – before all talk seemed to stop... for some reason.

"What a day... seeing old acquaintances everywhere." The woman said suddenly, causing Naruto to furrow his brows. _'Old acquaintances? Who could she have been fighting with that she knew? Unless...'_ The blond boy thought to himself inquisitively, before Jiraiya cut him off.

"Orochimaru?" The white haired man asked, getting a noticeable visual twitch from both Shizune and Tsunade. "...what happened?" He pried, though Tsunade didn't seem fazed by the question... though she did direct a small glare to Shizune, for whatever reason.

"Nothing much... we just said hello." She answered, as Naruto huffed in disbelief, though he made sure to not be heard. It was hardly respectful to huff at one of the Sannin, even if they were drunk blond women who were obviously lying...

Haku was mostly just ignoring the conversation, simply enjoying her food, but even she couldn't help but roll her eyes at Tsunade's answer. _'Well, this meeting just got a lot more interesting,' _She thought to herself, looking over at Naruto. She knew he probably didn't want to see Orochimaru anytime soon, what with the cursed seal and the death of the Sandaime.

For some unknown reason, Tsunade pulled out a deck of cards and started shuffling them before placing them onto the table, where Jiraiya took them himself.

"What do you want?" The older woman said impatiently, obviously not really wanting to continue the conversation if she didn't have to.

"I'll get right to the point..." Jiraiya started, shuffling the cards himself. "...Tsunade, the village has requested that you become the Godaime Hokage." The statement gave pause to both Tsunade and Shizune, who had the decency to look surprised. Tsunade then settled into a rather uncaring expression, confusing Naruto and Haku.

"Did you hear about what happened to the Sandaime?" Jiraiya continued, though he was a little miffed that she didn't respond to being offered the most important role in the entirety of Konoha.

"Yeah, Orochimaru killed him right?" Tsunade said, instantly making Naruto grit his teeth in anger while grabbing the table forcefully. Haku noticed his reaction and comfortingly placed her hand on his shoulder. Shizune and Tsunade also noticed the reaction, but had varying reactions. "...I heard it from him directly." She continued, still seemingly uncaring. Naruto let out an aggravated sound at the casual mention, his patience being seriously tested.

"Don't you care at all?" Naruto asked suddenly, and disapprovingly. Tsunade shot him a glance of interest, but she was otherwise unfazed. "...the Sannin were students of the Sandaime, right? Shouldn't you at least be sorry that he's dead?" He asked as calmly as he could, though there were traces of anger in there. Tsunade huffed at the jab, not bothering to indulge him with an answer.

"Who is this kid?" She asked while looking at him glancingly. Naruto sighed at her attitude, but closed his eyes and resorted to staying silent. Jiraiya let a small smile raise across his features before answering.

"Naruto Uzumaki." The man said with a trace of pride, while Tsunade looked at him with surprise. '_So, this is the Kyūbi Jinchūriki huh?' _She thought to herself with interest. It wasn't every day you met one of the nine people on the entire planet that contained a Bijū, and nor was it every day that you met an Uzumaki clan member.

"Pleasure to meet you, Tsunade-san..." Naruto said with a smirk, as he formed a small crystal needle in his hand and began shifting it between his fingers idly, intending to surprise the woman – which he did rather successfully. "...this is my friend Haku Yuki." He continued, as a playful smirk crossed Haku's face.

"Oh? Just friends are we now, Naruto-kun?" The young girl asked, making Naruto chuckle at the question before taking an overly serious expression for his own amusement.

"Well I'm not exactly going to go around introducing you as my girlfriend to people I just met." Naruto said plainly, making Haku pout somewhat. Naruto just rolled his eyes with amusement as Tsunade looked on a little bitterly, thinking back to her dead lover Dan. Shizune smiled at the young couple before Naruto looked over at her. "...oh, I'm sorry, who might you be miss?" He asked Shizune, having forgotten to introduce himself to her.

"Shizune. It's nice to meet you, Naruto, Haku." The woman stated. She was a rather nice looking woman, having straight black, shoulder-length hair with bangs covering her ears and face. She was wearing a long, bluish-black Kimono with white trimmings.

"Likewise." Haku stated, while Naruto just nodded with an inviting smile. Tsunade stayed quiet for the most part while Jiraiya just stared at her, waiting for some semblance of a response to the rather important question he gave her.

"You still haven't answered my question, Tsunade..." Jiraiya asked absently. "...the village wants you to be the next Hokage, will you take the role?" He continued, not giving her much room for dismissal. She was quiet for a few moments as she looked at a few cards, seemingly searching for something on their faces.

Naruto couldn't help but stare at her with a fair share of confusion, since he couldn't fathom anybody who would turn down the role... though he may have been then slightest bit bias. After a few moments, Tsunade threw her cards to the table.

"Not possible. I refuse." She said with clear confidence in her answer. Everyone around the table – except for Jiraiya – showed surprise at the action while Naruto actually resorted to laughing in disbelief. Haku looked at him with a little embarrassment, but decided chastising him in public would be... inadvisable.

"You've got to be kidding me..." Naruto said with exasperation now that he'd gotten over his initial surge of bafflement. "...you're being offered the greatest Shinobi position in existence and... you _refuse_?" He continued, his tone not carrying much of a respectful tone, too disbelieving to care about such courtesies at the moment.

Tsunade directed him a small glare, before taking a shot of sake that Jiraiya had poured for her. She then let out a small laugh before looking at Jiraiya, obviously shrugging of the question quite quickly.

"I don't see why you bothered taking another apprentice, he's just going to be a disappointment compared to the last." She said, trying to insult him without doing so. Naruto – to her surprise – actually let a small and amused smirk grace his features at the intended jab at his potential, since it wasn't received how she had intended it.

"Yeah well, they say Tou-san _was_ pretty awesome." Naruto said almost smugly as he leaned back, placing his arms behind his head with amusement clear on his face as he looked on at the completely shell shocked expressions of the two women sitting in front of him. Haku looked at him questioningly while Jiraiya looked ready to burst a blood vessel.

"Naruto!" Jiraiya exclaimed loudly, in obvious disagreement about his casual admittance of his supposedly secret heritage. Honestly, this was exactly why he didn't tell the boy! Now it was seeming all the more like he was right to hide it.

"Oh don't worry about it! She was gonna find out when she became the Godaime anyway..." Naruto said wisely, crossing his arms in protest as he closed his eyes and turned to Haku's side. Jiraiya thought about it for a moment and couldn't help but agree with his logic... but still, it _was_ a public place.

"Yeah well, next time you go blurting _that_ out why don't you try doing it somewhere a little more _private_!" The white-haired man said quietly but dangerously. Naruto held up his hands in a placating gesture, agreeing with the man's logic. Meanwhile Tsunade and Shizune were staring at Naruto like he was some sort of once in a lifetime sight.

"Let me get this straight..." Tsunade said, still sounding a little baffled. "...he's one of the last Uzumaki clan members in existence, he's a Jinchūriki _and_ he's the only heir of the Yondaime...? Feel free to add to that list!" She said quietly, before all but shouting on the last sentence.

"Yes... yes and... yes... huh, I never thought of it like that before." Jiraiya said slowly, having never realised just how important Naruto actually was until now. He was the only child of the Yondaime, one of the only Uzumaki survivors and one of the nine Jinchūriki currently alive. It was hardly a small role that Naruto possessed. Naruto quickly clicked his fingers a few times to get their attention.

"Hang on a second, how does she know I'm a Jinchūriki?" The blond boy asked quizzically, his eyes narrowed and brows furrowed in confusion. Jiraiya just shrugged before answering.

"It's essentially public knowledge to anyone Chūnin rank or higher... since they'll be in charge of stopping you if you go on a rampage." He answered plainly, as Naruto let out a small huff of annoyance. It wasn't exactly comforting to know that.

"Great... thanks for the vote of confidence Jiji..." Naruto stated, muttering most of it to himself, though since he was facing Haku's direction she was easily able to hear it and let out a small laugh despite herself.

"Well this has been fun, but I'm not going to be the Hokage... so it was nice seeing you three." Tsunade said with finality, a small smirk on her face that irritated Jiraiya considerably. Naruto furrowed his brows, unsure of what her reasoning was.

"Why don't you want to the Hokage anyway?" Haku asked suddenly, her expression even and more curious than anything else. Naruto nodded in agreement with her question, since he was very interested in what the woman's answer would be.

"All the Hokage ever do is give and give for the village, and for what? They all end up dead for nothing... life isn't like money, only an idiot risks his life so easily. My grandfather and the Nidaime wished to end all war... but they wasted their lives before they could do anything about it." The woman replied rather cynically. For the most part Naruto remained still, though one could easily see the anger burning behind his eyes.

"You've changed Tsunade... I don't know what you've been thinking, but you just spelled it out." Jiraiya said almost mournfully, very unhappy about her change in opinions since leaving Konoha. It was obvious that her losses had made her very bitter.

"I'm in my fifties, even if I look like this... time changes people." She replied plainly, before her expression turned uncaring. "...just look what happened to Sarutobi-sensei? He fought for the village and was killed, and for what? Nothing. Orochimaru is still alive and he's dead." She continued coldly. Then she looked upwards and sighed.

"The title of Hokage means nothing... only a fool accepts it." She said, before a crystal needle found it's place in the wall right besides her neck. Naruto was staring at her rather intensely, his hand extended from throwing the needle but otherwise still. Haku knew that Tsunade's answer would rile him up, but she didn't realise the woman was so bitter.

"That... is some _very_ stupid logic you hold..." Naruto said coldly and bluntly, making Tsunade scowl at him. "...what is a Shinobi? A Shinobi is somebody who fights and risks their life for the betterment of their village and those close to them. If you say being Hokage is risking death, then what does a Shinobi do every day?" He continued, though he quickly became angered. "...oh, but I suppose I can't include you in that list... since all you do is run around, gamble and drink your life away! You aren't a Shinobi, you're a woman who's hiding from her life! Don't you _dare_ belittle the Hokage when you do nothing worth noting with your life to begin with!" Naruto shouted, barely containing the urge to draw his sword on the woman. Tsunade looked just as angered by his statement as he was by hers.

"What do you know about me?! How can you judge my decisions when you've barely been a Shinobi long enough to realise what the career holds? Everyone who I cared for died for that stupid role, so why should I give a damn about it?!" The woman raged at him, though Naruto sat unfazed as his heated glare dissipated into a disappointed one.

"If they died for the role, then you're insulting them just as much as you are the Hokage... would they be proud, Tsunade? That you are insulting the very thing they lived for?" Naruto said quietly but not holding back his thoughts one bit, and he was pretty sure his message got across when she jumped up and looked ready to kill him.

"You little brat..." Tsunade seethed, though Jiraiya quickly shot his hand out to block her from punching Naruto's face into the next building... without his body. Haku quickly shook Naruto's shoulder a little, though he didn't bother turning, happy to resort to staring at Tsunade accusingly.

"Naruto-kun... maybe you should stop antagonizing her..." The girl said worriedly, since Tsunade definitely looked ready to kill him.

"Tsunade-sama, please calm down!" Shizune urged in panic, now having stood up to attempt to calm her master. Neither Haku nor Shizune were successful in doing much other than getting their respective audiences to turn to them for a second before resuming what they were doing.

It was clear to the general audience that the two weren't exactly fond of the other. Naruto disliked Tsunade for her twisted views on the role and individuals which the boy revered while Tsunade was much less than amused by the fact that Naruto was so openly insulting of her suffering, claiming that she was handling her grief wrong.

Naruto wasn't just riling her up for nothing though, his Negative Emotions Sensing ability didn't just apply to hatred and intent to kill, it also applied to the more negative views on things. It was clear after getting her emotions rolling that she had a lot of pent up anger and grief that she simply hadn't let go of.

"These people you lost... losing them broke you, didn't it?" Naruto said seriously, his mood having changed dramatically. Tsunade was surprised that he changed to this topic, since she didn't really want to talk about it. "...and they wanted to become Hokage, but was that really the cause of their death? Aren't you being a little cynical about this? The Hokage were great men... you're being offered to stand alongside the likes of legends, is your grief really worth giving this up?" He continued, trying to break through her shell.

Tsunade stared at him for a few seconds, bewildered that a mere child could identify what she was felt and was doing so easily. It was clear to her that he wasn't what she initially thought, though that was obvious when he started playing with crystals that seemed to appear out of nowhere and when he pronounced himself as the son of the Yondaime Hokage... maybe he was worthy as an apprentice. She let out a small laugh as she realised why he was so... invested in this topic.

"You want to become Hokage too, don't you?" She asked as the rest of the participants at the table looked on rather confusedly, unsure how the mood managed to change so damn quickly. Honestly, Naruto was one perceptive kid.

Naruto smiled with sentimentality before closing his eyes and letting his mind drift back to the things that made him into who he was. Learning of the Will of Fire created by Hashirama Senju and deeply believed by the members of both the Senju and Sarutobi Clans, getting lectures of the amazing deeds of his hero (now known as his father) and generally just learning of his village made him deeply come to love the place and want to dedicate his life to it.

"More than anything..." The blond boy replied, before a small frown of concentration crossed his features and Tsunade could swear she saw his eyes flick to his side, where Haku was sat. "...well, almost anything." He said warmly, not that anyone present was sure what he meant. Haku narrowed her eyes on him searchingly, but couldn't really decipher anything.

Tsunade looked at him for a few moments and couldn't help but notice that if his hair was shorter, he'd look a lot like Nawaki, her dead brother. He even shared the same dream, it was simply too convenient. Letting out a sharp breath of derision, she stood up.

"Whatever, I'm still not taking the role..." She said with annoyance. Naruto let out a sigh at her attitude but made no other movements to stop her. Jiraiya just watched her go, while Haku was still staring at Naruto. She couldn't help but notice his eyes were fixed somewhere... inappropriate... on Tsunade.

The truth was he wasn't actually looking at her chest, but the thing that was dangling directly above it. The small green crystal that was hanging from the necklace seemed to... call to him, resonate with him... he wasn't sure how to describe it but he definitely felt some sort of connection to it. Haku began to grit her teeth somewhat when he didn't retract his eyes, and when he finally did all he saw was a rather angry person.

"Uh... something wrong Haku-chan?" Naruto asked with a mixture of amusement and confusion. Her anger didn't seem to lessen at the question, but it may have risen... not that Naruto could exactly explain that. All he knew was that his Negative Emotions Sensing was on the 'get the hell away from her' setting.

"You... pervert!" She shrieked, before punching him in the face and causing him to hit his head on the table. He groaned for a few moments before raising his head – which now had a noticeable fist mark on it – and rubbing his check while cringing at the feeling in it. He noticed Haku had stormed off... somewhere, so he simply sighed and lowered his head back to the table.

"Ow... what'd I do to deserve that...?"

* * *

><p>Naruto was currently just outside the town after the rather pointless conversation with Tsunade. He hoped that his words had gotten through to her, but it was probably wishful thinking... she was undoubtedly far-gone in her grief and denial. Still, it didn't seem like they'd be leaving until she accepted the role, since Jiraiya was as unshakable as Naruto himself.<p>

Due to this, Naruto decided he may as well get a little training done since it was up to Jiraiya to convince Tsunade at this point. Naruto didn't know the woman nearly enough to approach her and start trying to convince her to take the role, despite the fact that he _really_ wanted to in order to erase her twisted and nonsensical views on the Hokage position.

Simply thinking about how she'd spoken about the Sandaime, his father and the Shodaime and Nidaime just made him furious, which was why several trees around him had spiral-shaped marks covering their faces, the result of the usage of an incomplete **Rasengan**. The fact that he'd learned his father was the Yondaime probably made him angrier, since his father sacrificed his own happiness for the village and Tsunade STILL had the gall to spit on his legacy... it was infuriating! Still, he had to at least try to keep his emotions in check around others, since nobody would benefit from him flying of the chain.

Thinking back, he probably came off a little childish and annoying during the conversation they had in the bar... but he couldn't exactly help it, the Hokage position had always meant the world to him and two people he cared for died for it, so could anyone blame him for getting a little upset when someone claims the role means nothing?

Creating another **Rasengan** in his hand he tried as hard as he could to stabilize the sphere to prevent the chakra being released on impact, before hitting it into a tree. Despite his efforts, very little changed at he let out an annoyed huff at the rather difficult task he needed to complete... still, it was refreshing to know he was already making good progress. Ducking suddenly, he saw a Senbon needle implant itself into the tree before turning around to see Haku wearing a small smile.

"Well, someone's on edge." Haku claimed teasingly, while Naruto just looked on with a very questioning face. It wasn't exactly the best test of nerves to throw sharp and potentially deadly needles at someone.

"If I hadn't been you would've stabbed me in the neck..." Naruto retorted plainly and with narrowed eyes, accusing her with his very gaze. The girl just shrugged and walked rather freely towards him, clearly in a good mood for whatever reason. Naruto raised an eyebrow at the action, not sure what to make of it... though he assumed it wouldn't end well for him. "...you seem to be in a good mood." He accused, as she smiled at him with a slight spring in her step.

"You could say that..." She said playfully and Naruto couldn't help but allow an amused smile to break out across his face. Her playfulness was very endearing to him, he couldn't help but smile when she was like this.

"May I ask why? I tend to be very wrong when I assume things..." Naruto said somewhat jokingly, though he knew he wasn't the best when it came to girls regardless. Haku blushed, lightly turning away as the question was asked, confusing Naruto since he was pretty sure he hadn't said anything embarrassing.

"Well... I was thinking... about what you said, in the bar..." Haku started, and honestly Naruto had no idea what she was talking about. "...you said... uh... being Hokage was more important to you than _nearly_ anything... I was wondering what you meant... by that." She finished, and Naruto could now understand the awkwardness and shyness that had suddenly come over her.

If he was honest, she assumed correctly. He thought about what would hurt him most and relied on his heart to answer him... and the first thing he saw was her face. He knew that losing her would probably break him too, which was why he could somewhat sympathise with Tsunade. He couldn't imagine losing everyone precious to him in the same way... that would probably lead him to becoming rather hysterical himself.

"Oh is that all?" Naruto said casually, making Haku open her mouth in surprise. "...geez, I shouldn't even need to answer that... but whatever, if it helps then I will." He continued, now staring right at her with almost palpable seriousness. Haku felt herself begin to worry as his bright blue eyes bore into her own.

"Haku, you are more important to me than my dream." He stated with no doubt in his tone, which left Haku all but speechless. Even though she had assumed that answer it was very different to actually hear it. Naruto then dropped his serious expression and ran a hand through his overly long hair. "...at the end of the day I'd much rather be loved than be Hokage." Haku had to smile at this, since it made perfect sense to her. Being wanted had always been something she'd worried about, but to hear that he wanted her to be there for him was very gratifying.

"We... um... seem to have these conversations a lot." Haku said after a small silence, making Naruto let out a laugh of agreement before nodding. They had a lot more serious relationship talks than they needed to in all honesty.

"I guess so. Now..." The blond stated, before a **Rasengan** formed in his hand once more as the other gripped his wrist tightly. Feeling a little more confident than the last time he let a slight smirk cross his face before thrusting it into the tree again, but unfortunately another spiral patterned cut appeared on the tree. Naruto sighed before laying his head back.

"There must be a trick to this..."

* * *

><p>"Alright... so far I've tried focusing the chakra more specifically, I've tried creating a form of chakra 'bubble' around the outside... I've tried... ah, I don't even know anymore!" Naruto exclaimed before sitting down against one of the non-destroyed trees and looking at his slightly trembling hand. "...this is like trying to do two things at once." He continued, before looking over at Haku who seemed to be trying to do something herself.<p>

Walking over, he noticed there was a gathering of frost and ice in a small area in front of her while she was breathing heavily. Arching an eyebrow in interest he stopped at her side and waited for her to calm her breathing.

"Problem?" Naruto asked almost jokingly, since it was kind of obvious she was trying to do something. She spared him a sidewards glance before inhaling once more and closing her eyes and gathering chakra in her lungs.

"_**Hyōton: Gouon wo Zotto (Ice Release: Chilling Roar)!" **_She thought to herself, before forcefully exhaling a large cloud of extremely cold air. The results were impressive, causing noteworthy gatherings of ice and frost over everything in front of her for a couple dozen feet. Naruto let out a whistle as he walked in front of her and could already feel the cold temperatures.

"Impressive... how long have you been working on this?" The blond asked as he brushed a hand over a frozen tree, before quickly pulling back as the cold temperature actually 'burned' his hand a little. Shaking his hand he looked over at her with a rather amazed look on his face.

"A little while. After learning to use my **Fūton** chakra correctly I found that more wind-based **Hyōton **techniques were able to be made." The black haired beauty stated, though Naruto could understand the logic quite easily. **Kekkei Genkai** are (generally) composed of two or more elements... so the two together creates a mixture. That mixture – however – can be more like one element than the other, like how Haku's ice mirrors are more water-like while her 'cold clouds' are more wind-like.

"Yeah, I get that." Naruto answered, though the discussion actually helped him considerably. What if his chakra wasn't being changed into the correct 'type'? Chakra could take all sorts of different uses and shapes, maybe he just wasn't ensuring that the chakra he was using to form the **Rasengan** was... corporeal enough, rather than being the normal wispy chakra that was the base for the more basic techniques

It made sense, he hadn't actually used his normal chakra (in other words, non elemental) to form physical shapes before... maybe he was just going about this wrong... and maybe he could use his findings on chakra shape stability to make his shadow clones a bit more durable. They _were_ just chakra, so it could work.

Gathering the chakra carefully in his palm once more, Naruto thought for a second about the increased stability it required... but he was only using one hand, and his chakra control wasn't exactly the best, so that meant...

"Maybe I can think of a work around... for now at least." He mused aloud with a small smile of anticipation. He placed his other hand over the other and began working it around to get the rotation going while the bottom hand was still, trying to increase the stability of the sphere so it wouldn't disperse when he used it. The results looked promising, the rotation continued to increase while the orb maintained the shape, until it began to glow bright blue to signify it's completion.

Naruto moved his hand from above it and moved the hand that was supporting the **Rasengan** around a little, to see if the orb would dissipate or lose stability, but it seemed quite stable. Positioning himself near a large boulder, he thrust his hand forward.

"**Rasengan! (Spiralling Sphere!)"** He called out, and immediately noticed the lack of a spiral formation while his hand continued to bore through the rock. After a few seconds he completely got through the rock and marvelled at the hole in it. As he marvelled at the damage, Haku's head poked into view on the other side of the rock as she too looked at it.

"Nice, so is it complete now?" Haku asked with a smile as she continued to look through the hole in the rock rather than go around it. Naruto arched one of the corners of his mouth at her silliness, but decided not to comment of it.

"I think so! Although it is a little timely to create and I _do_ need two hands... but that's fine for now, I'm just happy to have it battle ready." Naruto stated, as he pulled a small book out of his pouch. Haku looked over at him with confusion as he also pulled out a pencil and started – or at least appeared to be – doodling something.

"What are you drawing?" Haku asked, as she peered over to see. Naruto quickly shut the book with a small blush as he turned and began to walk away, leaving a rather confused girl in his wake.

"Nothing important..." He muttered as he continued walking. A sly smirk crossed Haku's face as she crossed her arms.

"Oh, we'll see about that..." She mused, before following after him.

**-A few Days Later-**

It had been a rather uneventful week. Jiraiya had failed to convince Tsunade to take the Hokage role while Shizune had been repeatedly apologetic. Tsunade herself seemed to become even crankier and more distant from just about everyone as the week passed by. Haku and Naruto spent most of the time together, just enjoying the peace a little... though Naruto was getting bored of waiting.

"We should just leave, it's clear that Tsunade doesn't want to be the Hokage anytime soon... there are plenty of candidates that would be happy to take the role." Naruto said with clear exasperation, since they'd been waiting a week for what seemed to be nothing. He didn't exactly have any personal issues with Tsunade other than her rather cynical views, but she was hardly worth this trouble.

"For the last time, they _won't_ let you become Hokage at thirteen years of age!" Haku said with annoyance, since Naruto had been (jokingly) saying that the entire week. Said boy just huffed and crossed his arms in defiance.

"You don't know that..." Naruto muttered, before Haku just sighed and looked over at his pouch that was laying on his bed. She attempted to sneak over and grab it, before Naruto himself grabbed it and put in on the side of his thigh. "...I've told you that you can't see that book Haku-chan." He continued with an amused smile, while she just huffed and turned away.

Then – as if in waiting – the door burst open and Shizune came running in. She looked rather panicked and Naruto just looked at her with confusion and a little annoyance, she could've knocked! Then the woman looked around a little before calming down a little.

"Where's Jiraiya... or Tsunade-sama?" The woman asked quickly, while Naruto and Haku looked at each other, equally confused about what was going on.

"We have no idea, why do you ask Shizune?" Haku asked courteously, though she was a little annoyed about the intrusion as well. Shizune bit her nail as they all heard a noise outside the window. Naruto rolled his eyes and walked over, before opening it to find a rather sweaty and sick looking Jiraiya.

"What the heck happened to you?" Naruto said, with a clear attempt to sound serious... though it ended up coming out in an amused fashion. The man just grunted with obviously laboured breathing as Shizune came outside the window to check on him.

_'It seems like he's been given some form of drug that weakens the body and chakra network temporarily.'_ Shizune analysed with ease. She wasn't the apprentice of the best medic-nin alive for nothing, so it wasn't exactly hard to see what had been done to him.

"Tsunade must've poisoned me with something last night... I can't believe I didn't notice." Jiraiya stated, and Naruto could tell he was a little ashamed about letting Tsunade do it without him noticing. Still, it mattered little since he had no idea what was going on.

"What's goin' on anyway?" Naruto asked casually, wondering what the fuss was about. Shizune was panicked about something, Jiraiya was poisoned by Tsunade, it all seemed a little unusual that this would all occur for nothing.

"Right before you ran into us we were found by Orochimaru, as you know... but he offered a deal to revive Dan and Nawaki; Tsunade-sama's lover and brother... if she healed his arms so that he could destroy Konoha." Shizune said guiltily, since she did want to tell them about this but wasn't able to since it would've been a betrayal to her master. Naruto scowled at the mention of Orochimaru but took a deep breath to calm himself.

"...and the deadline was today, right?" He finished for her, receiving a nod before running a hand through his hair. "...great, I was hoping not to see Orochimaru before I was prepared to slit his damned throat..." He growled out, subconsciously touching his neck where Orochimaru bit him and lay his curse mark. Shizune narrowed her eyes at him questioningly, unaware that they were... acquainted.

"You've met Orochimaru?" Shizune asked, while Naruto let out a huff before channelling his cursed seal and letting it spread about halfway across his face before turning to Shizune, who was a little shocked by the action.

"You could say that..." The blond stated, before forcing the mark to recede. "...now are we gonna stop Tsunade from doing something colossally stupid or what?" He said light heartedly, making everyone shake their head at his fluctuating attitude before nodding and standing up.

"Let's get going!"

**-With Tsunade-**

Despite what she had made apparent to everyone else, Tsunade never planned to heal Orochimaru's arms but in fact she was intending to kill him with a rather subtle medical technique. Unfortunately, Kabuto had intervened due to his knowledge of medical Ninjutsu and the three had run off to a nearby field to do battle.

Tsunade had severely overestimated her abilities with her hemophobia, since she was unable to hold off even Kabuto after he intentionally cut himself, causing a noteworthy amount of blood to splatter on her and all but paralyse her. So here she was, on the floor, completely spaced out as Kabuto prepared to kill her. Imagine the surprise of the group when Kabuto's Kunai was blocked by a sword wielded by a rather familiar blond Shinobi.

"Kabuto... I knew you couldn't be trusted." Naruto stated as he held the silver haired spy back. Kabuto let out a tsk of annoyance before jumping back to Orochimaru's side. The group of four regrouped next to Tsunade, who was essentially useless at this point while Naruto just stared at her. Quick assumptions led him to believe that she was either paralysed by a Genjutsu or the blood on her. Considering Orochimaru apparently had no functioning arms and that she had excellent chakra control he had to guess the latter.

"Ahhh Naruto-kun, how nice to see you again." Orochimaru hissed out, while Naruto just glared at the snake and resisted the urge to foolishly charge at him. Jiraiya was somewhat childishly staring at Tsunade for poisoning him while Shizune was looking her over. "...you know, I was actually planning to send some of my men to retrieve you, so this all _very_ convenient!" He finished, as Naruto felt like either laughing or sighing at the man's persistence.

"Orochimaru-sama has taken interest in you, Naruto-kun... you should join us, where you'll be truly valued for your skills!" Kabuto claimed, and this time Naruto really did sigh. It was actually quite ridiculous how mentally unstable Orochimaru and his cohorts thought the blond was.

"What are you, stupid? You really think I'd betray Konoha, in front of two non-disabled Sannin for that matter?" Naruto said plainly, his face betraying nothing. Kabuto just frowned at the jab, since it just meant that Naruto would have to be dealt with a different way.

"Well, that's too bad... we can't have people with control over their cursed seals just running around freely." Kabuto said, before charging in to attack, while Jiraiya went towards Orochimaru. The two Sannin quickly started having a large scale battle involving snakes and giants swamps, but Naruto wasn't really concerned about them for the moment. Before he was able to do anything, Shizune decided to deal with Kabuto herself.

"Let me handle this, you two protect Tsunade-sama." She urged, as she began to clash with the silver haired man. Naruto felt the need to protest, but jumped back to Tsunade regardless. Shizune began firing off Senbon from a wrist-mounted launcher which Kabuto evaded, before the man came in with a curved Kunai and attempted to cut her down, only to be evaded himself.

Shizune then breathed out a large quantity of purple gas that enveloped Kabuto, which Naruto quickly deduced to be poison. After a few moments, it seemed like Kabuto wasn't going to re-emerge, but then he appeared and knocked Shizune out.

"Well... so much for that plan." Naruto muttered, as he looked over at Haku and shrugged. "...you want to do this together or one at a time?" He asked quietly, as he spared a glance at Kabuto who seemed to be waiting rather smugly.

"Together." The girl replied with an even face, as Naruto nodded before looking right at Kabuto. Then, he ran forward and grabbed a Kunai that was hidden within his sleeve and attempted a quick swipe on Kabuto, who easily evaded it, but quickly found a Senbon lodged in his shoulder. Naruto allowed a smirk to cross his face at the annoyed expression on Kabuto's face, two on one was always more fun... if a little unsporting.

Naruto found himself having to clash his Kunai with Kabuto's own, before the man before to overpower him. He mustered his strength while seeing Haku dashing in behind the man, before Kabuto kicked him to the ground before turning around and jumping out of the way of Haku's attempted stabbing attack; her Senbon gripped between her knuckles.

"You two are out of your depth, you can't beat me." Kabuto boasted arrogantly, making Naruto roll his eyes and Haku shake her head.

"Yeah yeah, that's what they all say." Naruto retorted, making Kabuto shrug casually, obviously believing that he was talking the truth.

With the small break in conversation over, Haku gave Naruto a small signal to keep Kabuto busy, which he immediately acknowledged. Forming the clone seal, four shadow clones poofed into existence while Naruto nodded at them as they dashed forward. Kabuto laughed at the action, kicking the first clone away easily and taking a vertical slice on the next.

The third got behind him and attempted to trip him, but Kabuto easily jumped over it and swung around into an attack that landed with ease. The last clone looked a little worried as it brandished a Kunai and attempted to throw it at Kabuto, who caught it in the ring and threw it back. Thinking that he'd won, Kabuto smiled again, but quickly realised that he couldn't see Haku.

"**Hyōton: Gouon wo Zotto!" **He heard her shout, as he whipped around to see an incoming whitish cloud, with a few sparkles in there to signify shards of ice. He jumped to evade the cloud, but was caught on his non-dominant arm, which immediately began to burn in pain and feel stiff. Hissing in pain, he glared at the pair who were again side-by-side with their weapons of choice in hand.

"Don't get overconfident, Kabuto." Naruto advised sportingly. "...I mean c'mon, I hardly want this dance to end before the music is over." He continued, but he could've sworn he felt Haku mentally slap him across the head. Kabuto looked at him in confusion, but the man shook his head and got ready to attack again, before going through a few signs that Naruto was familiar with.

"**Suiton: Suiryūdan no Jutsu (Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique)!"** Kabuto shouted, as a water dragon seemed to appear out of thin air, surprising both Naruto and Haku. It quickly shot forward, as Haku held her hands out and began to exude chakra. Then, as the dragon was about to reach her it froze and stopped in place. Naruto arched a brow, impressed with the feat before shaking his head to regain his composure. Kabuto – as you'd expect – didn't look pleased.

"Have that back!" Haku shouted, as the now ice dragon turned around and shot back towards Kabuto. The man growled as he began dodging the dragon, before he felt himself hit against a rock. Thinking quickly, he jumped straight up as the dragon crashed into the rock and shattered. Naruto frowned but shrugged, since it made him waste some stamina at least.

"You didn't know you could do that, did you?" Naruto whispered quietly, as an embarrassed smile crossed Haku's face.

"Not a clue!" She replied, making Naruto let out a small laugh. Kabuto scowled at the fact that they were seemingly so confident that they had time to chat amongst themselves. He dashed forward at Haku – who he could tell had the lesser Taijutsu skill between them – before stabbing his Kunai forward. Haku began to weave around his attacks, since her style didn't really focus on defence but rather evasion, before Naruto – who had now drawn his sword – attempted to cut the man in half with a sloppy swing. Kabuto blocked the swing with a smile before punching Naruto in the face and causing him to fall back a few feet before he was kicked to the ground.

As Kabuto prepared to finish him with his Kunai, a mass of small water needles formed in the air and aimed themselves at the silver haired man, who was forced to retreat before they got to him. Naruto stood up and brushed a knuckle across his face, hardly happy that he got hit. Haku shot him a worried glance – though she hid it well – before turning her attention back to Kabuto.

"You shouldn't use weapons you aren't comfortable with, Naruto-kun." Kabuto said mockingly, though Naruto didn't even care about what he was implying. No, the issue was with the rather irritating suffix that he had no right or reason to use.

"Why do you all insist on calling me 'Naruto-kun'? You aren't my girlfriend, 'ttebayo..." The blond said plainly, making Kabuto blush in embarrassment but otherwise ignore the jab. Haku stifled a laugh, but shot Naruto a small smile. Kabuto then placed his Kunai in a pouch, confusing the duo. That was – at least – before both his hands began to glow with blue chakra, before he shot forward.

Naruto was prepared to underestimate the attack, but quickly remembered due to the **Rasengan** that pure chakra was not something to take lightly. Blocking with his sword, Kabuto thrust his hand downwards and clashed with the blade, which Naruto noticed did not cut into the man's hand, so the chakra coating must've been substantially sharp or strong.

"You were in the Chūnin Exams... but you worked for Orochimaru the whole time didn't you?" Naruto questioned, while maintaining their deadlock as carefully as he could. Kabuto just let a smirk cross his face before chuckling to himself.

"As if I'd be a Genin at my age... or be committed to that crap hole of a village." Kabuto retorted, as Naruto's face shifted into a very serious visage. Kabuto noticed that Naruto – despite having his free hand behind the blade, to support it against Kabuto's strength – was going through a few one handed seals with it carefully.

"I'm an understanding guy..." Naruto stated, a few crystal Shuriken began to take form in the air around him as he glared at Kabuto. "...but I have no patience for traitors and spies... now begone!" He shouted as he prepared to have his Shuriken kill Kabuto where he stood. He felt – however – a strange sensation that he hadn't felt since...

"No..." The blond muttered, as his cursed seal began to flare to life against his will. The action caught him off guard severely, since he was all but... no, he _was_ certain that the cursed seal was under wraps. Elsewhere on the battlefield, Orochimaru let his tongue extend from his mouth as a smile crossed his features. _'You thought I wouldn't have a fall back plan, Naruto-kun?' _Orochimaru thought to himself, before going back to his own fight.

Naruto completely lost control of his body at this point, allowing Kabuto to easily force him to the ground as he clutched his neck in pain. The silver haired man smiled arrogantly as he observed Naruto in his helpless state. Naruto meanwhile, was thinking every curse word he could possibly think of as he realised he was most likely going to die... he simply couldn't think of a reason for this to happen!

"_**I can't stop it mortal... it seems the snake had a fail safe installed." **_Kurama stated worriedly, since his life was in Naruto's hands at this point. He didn't even know what would happen if he reformed with only half his power, since no portion of the Bijū had never been sealed in the Shinigami's stomach before. Yin release was used to give him form while Yang release was used to give him life, since only half of him existed he _could_ be incapable of living at all...

"Looks like this is the end of you, Naruto-kun." Kabuto said with rare seriousness, dashing forward to stab Naruto with a Kunai once more, no longer needing to waste the chakra scalpels... however he found himself stopped before he had chance. He briefly noticed a head of black hair in front of him before feeling pain in his chest. After his mind cleared, he found he had stabbed Haku somewhere lethal, while she had stabbed him with three Senbon in the chest in return. Naruto merely looked on, with clear shock.

"What... what have you done?" Naruto said breathlessly, his eyes wide with shock. Despite herself, Haku allowed a small smile to rise to her face.

"I guess I just panicked... I wanted to..." She started, but coughed up a fair amount of blood while Kabuto fell back and pulled the Senbon out of his chest. "...I wanted to protect you." She finished, as she fell back, but Naruto caught her, completely ignorant of the fact that he managed to move just fine with the cursed seal keeping him immobile.

"Come on, you'll be fine! We had plans, right? We were going to face the Akatsuki together..." Naruto said comfortingly, though he quickly felt tears begin to flow. "...you can't... not like this..." He continued, now openly crying. Haku reached up, touching his cheek with obvious difficulty; one last defiant act.

"N-Naruto-kun... it's...it's alright... I... l-love you." She said, with a difficult smile that seemed to degrade into nothingness as Naruto sat motionless; his wide and weeping eyes moving madly across her face to see a sign of life.

Tsunade looked on at the scene with a morbid sense of Deja vu, it was just like her and Dan. She began to rigidly stand; to attempt to get to the girl to save her. _'Not again... nobody will go through what I did!'_ Tsunade thought to herself as she began to walk towards the two. Before she could get there, a large wave of force knocked her over.

When she raised her head she noticed everyone had paused, with the centre of attention being Naruto. He was not as he used to be though... no, now he was covered by a thick coat of red chakra and a single tail was waving behind him as his blood red, slitted eyes stared at a certain silver haired man.

"**KABUTOOOOOOO! YOU'RE FUCKING DEAD!" **

**-****End-**

**There is some not-so-subtle foreshadowing in this chapter, can you guess what it is?**

**Anyway... Review, Favourite and/or Follow. **

**LiamMorg. Out.**

**Ja Ne!**

**-Original Technique(s)-**

**Hyōton: Gouon wo Zotto (Ice Release: Chilling Roar): **The user (Haku) releases a hyper-cooled blast of air from her mouth in a large cloud. This cloud then causes a flash freezing effect that severely hinders an opponent and/or causes frostbite. Range is variable based on chakra usage and the skill/chakra control of the user. (C-Rank. Offensive)


	22. Power Overwhelming and the Broken Helmet

**I don't own Naruto... if I did then I would totally give nine tailed version 2 cloak Naruto some damn screen time... we saw what he could do with six tails, I wanna see more of that!**

**Quote of the chapter/day: "Mess with a monster... and you shall feel his wrath."**

**Chapter 21: Power Overwhelming and the Broken Helmet**

**-Last Chapter-**

_Tsunade looked on at the scene with a morbid sense of Deja vu, it was just like her and Dan. She began to rigidly stand; to attempt to get to the girl to save her. 'Not again... nobody will go through what I did!' Tsunade thought to herself as she began to walk towards the two. Before she could get there, a large wave of force knocked her over._

_When she raised her head she noticed everyone had paused, with the centre of attention being Naruto. He was not as he used to be though... no, now he was covered by a thick coat of red chakra and a single tail was waving behind him as his blood red, slitted eyes stared at a certain silver haired man._

"_**KABUTOOOOOOO! YOU'RE FUCKING DEAD!" **_

**-Start-**

Everyone looked on in a mixture of interest and surprise at the sudden emergence of the red chakra cloak that was now surrounding Naruto, it's singular tail waving menacingly over him as he got into a feral stance; crouched down on all fours. His hair was far wilder, his whisker marks were thicker and his eyes were piercing red slits.

Something interesting began to happen – however – when the cloak of chakra began to expand in certain places. It became apparent after a few seconds that it was extending because a sort of crystal armour was forming underneath it; blood red crystal spikes forming on Naruto's shoulders and a rib-cage-like formation on his chest. The tail itself even became a physical crystal structure, now capable of real damage. Generally, no other distinctive shapes were made – though there was a sort of crystal plating all over Naruto's body, as though the **Sh****ō****ton** and the Kyūbi's chakra were interacting.

Orochimaru's grin deepened as he saw the raw energy Naruto was commanding, whether willingly or through his rage. It slightly disappointed him that Naruto would not come to his side willingly, but he was determined to have him... and he had methods of doing so. The cursed seal was simply the easiest and most practical of those methods. _'Not to mention I still have her... she'll help.'_ He thought to himself before looking over at Jiraiya, who naturally was quite worried.

_'Dammit Naruto! I don't have time to deal with the Kyūbi right now!'_ Jiraiya stated, as he looked on at the transformation his student had gone through. He had to admit, the usage of **Sh****ō****ton** in the transformation was a surprise, but then again he hadn't heard of many Jinchūriki with **Kekkei Genkai**... maybe some were just more reactive than others.

Kabuto wouldn't admit it, but he was worried by this chakra cloak and crystal plating that Naruto had suddenly gained. His chakra scalpels were nothing against the potent and thick chakra of the Bijū, so that was out of the question... his Kunai would have little effect against the crystal, so he was severely limited in his response.

"**What's the matter, are you scared?" **Naruto growled almost in an almost feral tone, most of his mind being clouded by rage and the oncoming of Kurama's powerful chakra. Seeing a lack of a reaction from his prey, he let out a bloodthirsty laugh. **"...if you aren't, you should be!"** He roared before dashing forward with far greater speed than he exhibited moments before, tearing up the ground where he was stood. Kabuto couldn't believe the new power he possessed, having little time to react before Naruto was upon him.

"**DIE!"** The wrathful Jinchūriki roared, before his clawed hand – covered with a thick cloak of chakra – came down upon Kabuto, who barely dodged before it slammed down upon the ground, causing a small tremor to occur from the sheer force. It could be likened to Tsunade's chakra enhanced strength, but this was _far_ more potent, with the entire cloak over the hand boosting Naruto's strength to extreme levels.

A small dust storm was kicked up by the impact, and Kabuto had little time to react before a fist of red chakra extended from within it and slammed into him, throwing him back across the clearing with a grinning Naruto watching with amusement. He was hardly in the correct state of mind, and was finding Kabuto's suffering to be very entertaining.

* * *

><p>As this was all happening, Tsunade had gotten up and moved over to Haku – who was now bleeding rather severely – while trying her hardest not to freeze up from the blood. Looking at the girl, she kept seeing Dan's face while remembering what his death did to her... and was <em>still<em> doing to her. She couldn't let that happen to another person, she wouldn't let Naruto end up like her.

_'I will save you, I won't let this happen again!'_ Tsunade shouted in her mind, shakily reaching down and placing her hands upon Haku's wound, which quickly caused her hands to become covered in blood. For a moment she relented; pulling back in fear of the red sticky substance, but remembered what she was doing it for. Unknowingly, she fought back against her fear of blood as her hands began to glow a green hue, signifying that she was using the **Sh****ō****sen Jutsu (Mystical Palm Technique)**.

She was quickly able to identify that the wound was rather serious and that the girl would probably die unless she acted quickly, but she was determined to save her. Sparing a glance upwards, she saw Kabuto flying through the air as a corporeal fist of chakra retracted into a clearing smoke cloud, where Naruto was watching the man fly with glee. Shaking her head and reminding herself that the Kyūbi's chakra was affecting Naruto, she went back to her healing.

A sad frown came over her face as she continued to heal Haku, as she could easily identify how important the girl was to Naruto. It made her wonder what would've happened if Dan hadn't died... but such thoughts were irrelevant. Seeing the bond between the two was a refreshing wake up call... there was still love in the world, and still those that could be saved from tragedy... maybe it was time for her to get over her grief.

"You mean everything to him... don't waste the time you have." The blond woman said warmly, as she continued to fix the wound on the girl. She wouldn't die, because Tsunade was the best medic-nin alive... and she was back in the game.

* * *

><p>"Ah Jiraiya, it seems as though your apprentice has lost control... such a pity. It would be a shame if he ended up killing Tsunade in his rage wouldn't it?" Orochimaru said in his normal manipulative way. He was holding his own against Jiraiya, but that was mainly because of Tsunade's drug. Chances were that he wouldn't be able to defeat his old teammate, so he needed to try and end this, if possible. Unfortunately, Jiraiya let a small smirk cross his face.<p>

"I'd be more worried about Kabuto if I were you." The white haired man retorted, and Orochimaru frowned slightly. Kabuto was his right hand man and was capable of rather amazing self-healing techniques. The odds of him dying to Naruto – chakra cloak or no – were mostly insignificant... but there was always the chance...

If Kabuto did die he'd be in a sticky situation, since the man was in charge of mostly all of his medical procedures. It was clear that Tsunade had no intention of healing his arms, so he'd need to be kept stable until he was ready to switch bodies, which would be rather difficult on his own... with no arms.

"Kabuto has been an asset to me for years, he'd never lose to a child, Jinchūriki or not." Orochimaru stated confidently, though Jiraiya didn't falter. He smirked with confidence of his own, which surprised the other Sannin.

"You shouldn't underestimate him, he's got potential greater than even we did... he'll be unstoppable in his prime." Jiraiya said with certainty, though Orochimaru was a little sceptical he could understand where his teammate was coming from. He was a Jinchūriki, an Uzumaki and he possessed the **Sh****ō****ton**... he was no weakling, that was for sure.

"Not if he never reaches it... Kukukuku." Orochimaru said darkly, laughing in his own twisted way as he finished. Jiraiya scowled at his teammate, seeing truly how far he'd fallen since leaving Konoha.

"We'll see about that!" Jiraiya roared, before getting back into his own fight.

* * *

><p>Kabuto was hating life right now, plain and simple. It was both ludicrous and infuriating to have little to no offensive or defensive assets to use against a thirteen year old Genin! He didn't give a crap that Naruto was a Jinchūriki, he'd been spying and working as the right hand of Orochimaru for years, it would take numerous ANBU to even attempt to defeat him!<p>

Yet here he was, acting as an elusive punching bag for a rampaging Jinchūriki... he'd need to work on his diversity, that was for sure. It was pretty embarrassing for this kind of thing to happen to him. Fortunately there weren't many people around to see this happening, so at least Kami hadn't completely decided to screw him over.

Meanwhile, Kurama was sitting back and enjoying the show. Usually, this would be the point where he'd force more of his chakra out and attempt to increase the tail count until he was released... but he really didn't feel bothered to do so at the moment, or at least that was what he told himself. It was rather entertaining to see Naruto turn this Jōnin level – or maybe higher – Shinobi into a punching bag.

"_**I wonder if I should tell him that the vixen isn't dead? Hmm... nah, this is more fun. He'll figure out later."**_ Kurama said to himself casually. It wasn't that he cared that Naruto was mourning the girl... nope, not one bit. Still it was a learning experience to him that Naruto apparently had a hell of a rage trigger that applied to Haku's well being.

Once Kabuto got a safe distance away, he went through the signs of the **Suiton: Suiryūdan no Jutsu **again, causing a water dragon to form and rush towards Naruto. The blond simply smiled devilishly, raising his hand into the air before slamming it down and causing a noteworthy shockwave. The interesting part was that everything within a certain radius of him was covered with a layer of red crystals as a result of the strike – including the dragon, which now made a very attractive ornament.

"**Yes... dance for me... let the footsteps flow freely." **Naruto said gleefully, apparently having his thirst for a good battle amplified significantly by the chakra cloak. He was still going to tear Kabuto apart, but he was going to have fun with him first. Speaking of Kabuto, he was starting to get rather annoyed by Naruto's onslaught and dance jokes, to the point where he was losing his composure.

"Please, as if a wild animal like you can take me... you're just a pawn, for your village and the Kyūbi!" Kabuto said mockingly, though he was hoping Naruto would compromise himself somehow. Naruto just laughed menacingly before shooting Kabuto a dangerous glare.

"**Such asinine muttering from a dead man means nothing to me... now come, fight me!" **Naruto urged, as he deepened himself into a low crouch on all fours. Kabuto snarled at the jab, quite frankly having enough of Naruto at this point.

He decided to indulge Naruto however, since simply staying back and attempting to dodge Naruto's onslaughts would probably get him nowhere, considering he was using the Kyūbi's chakra and his own reserves were massive to begin with. As he approached, Naruto wasted no time attempting to slice him in half with his claw, which Kabuto quickly jumped over. Naruto grinned as he threw his body forward, impaling his shoulder spike into Kabuto's Kabuto's right lung.

"Arghh!" Kabuto shouted in pain, as he spat out a significant amount of blood. To Naruto his screams were like a melody, which was definitely a weird feeling but he didn't particularly care right now. Deciding not to waste much more time, his tail came over his body and attempted to skewer through Kabuto's heart... only to be grabbed between the man's hands, which were glowing blue to signify the usage of chakra scalpels.

While it did save his life, it certainly didn't spare him much pain as the corrosive chakra of the Kyūbi began to sear his hands. Growling in pain and straining to prevent the tail from killing him, he threw it to the side before bringing his hand down severing some of the crystal that was impaled into him. He jumped back and dropped to one knee, before tearing the end of the crystal spike from his chest and using his **In'yu Shōmetsu**** (Yin Healing Wound Destruction) **technique to repair the majority of the damage. Naruto looked on with interest as he saw the wound fizzle to a close.

"**Interesting... you can heal fast. No matter... it just means we can play for longer." **Naruto said almost excitedly. Kabuto was definitely starting to see that this wasn't his fight, he just wasn't suited for such defensive and offensive synchronisation. The chakra cloak and crystal armour combined to make Naruto practically untouchable while he was able to use both those things offensively; extending the limbs of the chakra cloak and using the crystals as piercing weapons.

It became clear that ending this quickly was his best course of action, so he charged forward with his chakra scalpels – forcing as much chakra into them as he could in order to increase their effectiveness. Naruto smiled as the man approached, though he had to admit this fight was beginning to grow boring... he'd probably finish Kabuto soon.

Naruto extended another claw at Kabuto, intending to grab him and slam him into the ground. Kabuto quickly side-stepped this, thrusting the scalpel down and somehow severing the chakra claw. Naruto growled as he now needed to reform the claw, and which while not a lengthy procedure it was a little annoying.

As Kabuto neared the blond, he stabbed one chakra scalpel forward, though Naruto grabbed his arm with the free arm. Kabuto then quickly severed this arm with his own spare scalpel to save himself from being exposed to the chakra for too long. Naruto then charged forward once more – intending to use his crystal armour once more – though Kabuto was able to foresee the attack this time, jumping into the air and kicking the blond square in the jaw.

Naruto staggered back, giving Kabuto time to give him a vertical cut on the muscles in his chest, making the blond hiss in pain and anger. His tail whipped around and smacked Kabuto in the side, throwing him away from Naruto who was now holding his chest to give himself some comfort against the pain. The unfortunate thing about the chakra scalpels is the damage tended to be mostly internal.

_'I can't keep this up forever... he has mountains worth of chakra, while I'm far more average.'_ Kabuto thought in worry. He knew he had dealt some damage with that last attack, but he wasn't sure how much more he could give without running out of juice. Every time he used the **In'yu Shōmetsu **his chakra levels would plummet, since the healing was rather taxing.

"So is this it Naruto-kun? Would Haku approve of this behaviour?" Kabuto asked mockingly, trying to get Naruto to lose all self-preservation. Fortunately it was successful... a little _too_ successful as Naruto immediately began to sprout another chakra tail which was accompanied by another strong wave of force.

"**DON'T YOU SPEAK OF HER!" **Naruto roared in fury, rocketing forward towards Kabuto with even more speed, smashing him in the stomach with an expanded chakra fist, rather than an extended one. He then carried him for a few dozen feet before they slammed into another boulder and caused the whole thing to explode, though nobody else saw much other than a thick wave of dust and earth being thrown up in their wake before a giant cloud exploded in all directions when they made contact with the boulder.

"_**Well, that was unexpected... the mortal is not playing around."**_

* * *

><p>Jiraiya and Orochimaru looked on in shock – for different reasons – as they saw the massive scar on the field that had been essentially flawless when they got there. For Jiraiya, he was shocked that Naruto was capable of such destruction and wondered just <em>what<em> Kabuto had done to warrant such devastation... until he looked over at Tsunade, who was healing Haku. He could guess what had happened, and Kabuto was definitely not safe.

Orochimaru was shocked that Kabuto was getting so thoroughly thrashed by Naruto, though seeing what the boy just did he could hardly blame the man... it seemed like today wasn't Kabuto's lucky day. It was almost unreal, the sheer potential that Naruto possessed... if he could master the Kyūbi's power he would be a force of nature; capable of destroying entire village's single-handedly with enough training... and he wasn't even aware of the **Bij****ū****dama (Tailed Beast Ball) **yet!

"I think your right hand man is screwed." Jiraiya muttered casually, and despite himself Orochimaru actually nodded along with him.

* * *

><p>"My Kami..." Tsunade muttered lowly, witnessing destruction that she hadn't seen in years. Judging from the rather loud roar that Naruto performed before completely wrecking the field (and probably Kabuto too) she could guess that Kabuto had probably mentioned Haku or something like that. Still, this level of destruction simply wasn't necessary.<p>

Even when she used her chakra enhanced strength she wasn't capable of this much damage in a single action. It just went to show the level of power the Jinchūriki were capable of commanding. It was like one of the tales of the Shodaime and Madara Uchiha's fights, commanding great power and creating the Valley of the End in their final battle.

"He's gonna need to calm down soon... or he'll smear Haku on the ground regardless of me healing her." Tsunade muttered with a little irritation. To be fair, she _did_ just overcome a serious phobia for their sake, so that damn blond better appreciate it! Looking over at Shizune, she was almost disappointed that the woman went down so quickly, but couldn't find it in her to care given their situation. To his credit, Kabuto managed to put up a good fight against super-powered Naruto... but that seemed to be over.

* * *

><p>The smoke began to clear a little and Naruto could see the all but destroyed form of his opponent moving erratically on the ground as he attempted to ignore the massive pain he was experiencing. He could care less that he just destroyed a massive section of the field. No, Kabuto had the gall to kill Haku and then insult her... he would die painfully.<p>

He stood over Kabuto's form furiously as the man tried his hardest to heal his wounds, though that was easier said than done. His chest had almost completely collapsed in on itself due to the force of Naruto's punch, and the rest of his body was severely cut and bruised. He cursed his overconfidence and carefree mocking more than ever as he tried to pick himself up, only to have Naruto step on his already damage chest, causing him to cough up blood.

"Wh...What... are you g-gonna... k-kill me? I... doubt you c-could." Kabuto spluttered out as his wounds continued to heal, though his chakra reserves were beginning to drop to very dangerous levels. He wouldn't last much longer, that's for sure... his fate was in Naruto's hands at this point. The blond growled ferociously as he grabbed Kabuto and raised him into the air.

"**Oh you're going to die alright, but how quickly depends on how merciful I'm feeling... which isn't very." **Naruto stated, as he slammed Kabuto back against the ground, ignoring the man's curses and wails of pain. The man would receive no mercy. **_'He will die... he will suffer... he will-'_** Naruto thought to himself before he heard a voice.

"Naruto! Calm down!" Tsunade shouted loudly, though Naruto didn't care. He would kill the man for what he'd done. "...Haku is alive Naruto!" She shouted, making Naruto pause for a moment. A smug smile crossed Kabuto's face as he was sure Naruto couldn't go through with killing him now, because of his oh so important morals.

"**..." **Naruto was silent for a few moments as he looked over at Haku who – to Tsunade's credit – was taking in breath and he could detect her chakra signal, it was weak but it was certainly there. He then looked around at the destruction he'd inadvertently caused and the other fight going down, before centring his gaze on Kabuto's smile.

"**He still dies." **Naruto said joylessly, placing on hand outwards as chakra began to spiral into it and a purple **Rasengan** was formed in his palm. Kabuto's eyes widened in fear for his very life as Naruto thrust the orb forward, digging into him and throwing blood and flesh all around as it all but tore the man apart. Tsunade looked on in shock at the action he performed before he tossed Kabuto's body away, forcing the chakra cloak to recede but noting that Kurama gave little resistance.

He then walked over to Tsunade with a straight face, though he was covered in blood and flesh. It was a horrific sight, seeing a thirteen year old boy in such a state... it went to show the truth of the Shinobi world. The gatherings of crystal of Naruto's body seemed to lose whatever force was keeping them together as they fell away into small piles as he walked.

* * *

><p>"That... that boy killed Kabuto." Orochimaru muttered in a mixture of amazement and fury. Kabuto was all but essential to him, and now that he was without the man he would suffer until he was ready to take another host... but Naruto had proven his power and Orochimaru wanted him all the more. It was rather infuriating... he wasn't sure what to do about this.<p>

"That was... horrific." Jiraiya said sadly, almost as though he was mourning whatever innocence Naruto had left... because it had surely left after he did _that_! Once more, he had failed Minato... but there was little that could be done now.

* * *

><p>Naruto reached Tsunade and immediately sat down near Haku, placing a hand on her chest and feeling her heartbeat. It was faint, but it was there and it had been a while since Kabuto stabbed her so that must mean she would survive. He then looked at Tsunade, who had blood on her hands and a little bit on her clothes.<p>

"You saved her?" The blond boy asked, almost shocked by the concept. When Tsunade gave him a small smile and a wordless nod, she immediately found herself tackled into a hug. "...Thank you! Thank you so much!" He continued, his voice breaking in joy. Tsunade normally would've hugged back, but the blood and gore covering him was less than appealing. It was – in fact – disgusting.

She noticed briefly that her necklace was glowing a little; an almost ghostly green light being exuded by the small crystal that had never reacted to anything before. When Naruto pulled back and wiped his eyes using his sleeve, the crystal immediately stopped glowing as though missing his presence. Tsunade furrowed her brows as she looked at him, wondering what was going on. _'The necklace... seems to want to be with him...'_ She thought to herself, surprised since everyone else who wore it died. If the necklace gave such a clear reaction from his presence, that could mean only one thing...

"Here." Tsunade said, taking off her necklace and handing it to him. Naruto looked at her in confusion as he took the necklace from her. Looking it over, he felt something in it... something that called to him. Running a finger across its surface, he saw it begin to glow brightly before dimming into nothingness when he stopped.

"What... what is this?" Naruto asked, amazed by the strange and yet powerful object. Tsunade smiled somewhat in mourning, but she knew now that the necklace had never wanted her... not that a necklace could exactly 'want' someone. It seemed like it was waiting for Naruto.

"That... is my grandfather's necklace." Tsunade said informatively. Naruto nodded almost thoughtlessly as he put it on and felt... better somehow. It was a strange feeling, but it was definitely there. Then, he remembered who her grandfather was and almost choked in surprise.

"T-The Shodaime's Necklace?!" Naruto said while coughing uncontrollably. Tsunade nodded with a smirk as she saw his reaction to the statement, but it was a little understandable given the fact that he seemed to revere the Hokage position and the fact that the Shodaime was arguably the strongest Shinobi in – and the founder of, – Konohagakure. "...I... I can't accept this!" He urged, finding even the sentimental value of the necklace too great to simply take it from her.

"You can, and you will... consider it an order from the Godaime Hokage." Tsunade stated with a smirk. Naruto's eyes widened as he nodded wordlessly, understanding what she meant before she stood up and began to walk towards her two fellow Sannin. Naruto smiled looked down at Haku who, despite the situation, looked very peaceful in her rest. _'There's no way in hell I'm telling her what happened to Kabuto...'_ Naruto thought to himself, mentally berating himself for being so disgustingly brutal.

Shaking said thoughts out of his mind, Naruto looked down at the small necklace that Tsunade had just given him. Acting on instinct, he allowed the necklace to interact with his chakra before holding out his hand to the side. Then – to his surprise – a rather distinct green crystal burst from the ground and actually seemed to grow, as though alive. Raising an eyebrow at the strange occurrence, he looked at the necklace once more.

"Just what can you do?" Naruto muttered to himself before looking back over to the Sannin showdown happening in the background. It seemed as though he got rather self-involved for a little while, since now Gamabunta, the Snake boss summon and what appeared to be a Slug boss summon were all doing battle... well, the toad and slug were against the snake. Oh, and Orochimaru looked rather pissed.

Then Tsunade managed to pick up Gamabunta's massive sword – which made Naruto all the more aware of how ridiculously strong she was – before stabbing it through the snake's mouth. Having nowhere to go, the snake reverse-summoned itself back to... the snake realm. After that, Orochimaru proceeded to receive a rather brutal beating from Tsunade, before he eventually left.

Sighing, Naruto picked up Haku – _very_ carefully – before walking over to the two remaining. He knew Jiraiya would be pissed – hell, he'd be pissed in the man's situation – but there was little avoiding to be done. He needed to travel to Konoha with them, or risk the Akatsuki stumbling upon him... alone... yeah, that'd end well.

Jiraiya stole a glance at Naruto who had the decency to look ashamed about what he'd done. That was enough of an answer for the man, who said no more on the subject. That was a bit of a surprise to Naruto, but he was glad... he really didn't want to talk about it.

Wordlessly, the group walked back into town – luckily Naruto reminded Tsunade to grab Shizune, since leaving her wouldn't have been good – before the group decided to rest a little before departing.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, in the dark, dusty lair of a certain snake...<p>

"That damned brat, how dare he kill Kabuto! That man was useful, _too_ useful for him to just die!" Orochimaru shouted to himself before slumping back with a sigh. "...I can't even use my arms to bring him back with **Kuchiyose: Edo Tensei (Summoning: Impure World Reincarnation)**!" The man raged to himself before he fell silent...

...Though the silence was the herald of a dark plan.

* * *

><p>Jiraiya and Tsunade were sat around a small table back in Tsunade's apartment after they returned from the field. Shizune was busy checking up on Haku – on Tsunade's request, since she didn't need the experience – while Naruto was showering.<p>

"So, the Godaime Hokage..." Jiraiya said jokingly, making Tsunade huff a little and lean on her arm. It wasn't something she was expecting to do anytime soon, but she'd been shown in so short a time that her way of thinking was... foolish. She was wallowing in pity while the Shinobi world still had need of her, and if it was as the Godaime Hokage of Konohagakure... so be it.

"Yeah, don't get any ideas... I can hardly believe I'm doing this as it is." Tsunade replied with a little irritation. It probably meant that she'd need to cut down on her drinking... and her gambling... it basically meant her lifestyle was being taken from her. It wasn't still too late to run and hide, right?

The two fell into a somewhat comfortable silence as they both thought about seemingly unimportant things. Tsunade however couldn't help thinking back to what Naruto had done back out on the field, the boy who was currently in the shower cleaning off another person's flesh... yeah. that was a spectacle for the villagers as they returned. Her impression of his didn't quite picture him doing something like that... she actually kinda liked the kid.

"Tell me Jiraiya... Naruto isn't... he doesn't do _that_ often, right?" The woman asked concernedly, looking over at Haku who was resting on the bed at the other end of the room. Jiraiya frowned and leaned back, thinking back over what he'd heard from the Sandaime and his own personal experiences.

"As far as I know, that's the first time... or maybe the second... but never on that scale." The man replied honestly, thinking back to Naruto's recollection of the events in Nami. As far as he knew, Naruto had never sprouted a tailed cloak at all, let alone one with two tails... it was clear that Kabuto riled him up far more than he should've.

"That's good to hear... from what I could tell, he seems pretty smitten with her." Tsunade replied, gesturing over to Haku with a cup before taking a drink. Jiraiya smiled warmly as he looked over at the girl, remembering just how honest and deep his apprentice was when they spoke about his feelings for the girl... and they'd only gotten stronger.

"Yeah, I doubt the knuclehead knows it but I'm pretty sure he loves the girl... but that's also a problem." Jiraiya said warmly, though his tone turned a little more grim as he finished. Tsunade couldn't help but agree, it could end up being like her and Dan all over again, except he was also a Jinchūriki, so it could end a million times worse.

The two fell silent again, though this time it was a lot less comfortable than before. If Tsunade became Hokage – which she was sure of, at this point – then she'd be in charge of dealing with these kind of issues. It certainly wasn't good for anyone to have Naruto go on a rampage whenever Haku was injured, but it was unavoidable... the two of them were on the same team. Splitting them up probably wouldn't help, since Naruto would just miss her companionship.

That's when Naruto decided to enter the room, clad in little but boxers and a towel. He looked around the room a little and quickly noted the atmosphere before shrugging and going to get his clothes. Tsunade looked over at his retreating form and saw a bit of her brother in him again, while not bothering to fight back the sentimental smile that crossed her face along with her sad eyes.

The day went by pretty quickly, with not much going on before the group went to sleep. They woke up the next day rather early, with Naruto mostly staying beside Haku until she awoke. He knew the severity of her injury, and wouldn't rush her... he wouldn't forgive himself if he ended up being the source of another ailment.

He saw the girl begin to stir after about an hour of just thinking absently, and when she fully leaned up she clutched her wound in discomfort, but quickly noted that she wasn't, in fact, dead. Looking around tiredly, she saw the smiling face of her lover and immediately smiled back. When he slowly but very excitedly pulled her into a hug she just leaned into him with relief, since she knew her death would have been hard on him.

"You had me worried, you know that?" Naruto said light heartedly, since that was an understatement... but he really didn't want this to turn into a super serious conversation, much preferring to just be happy that she was still with him. Haku smiled happily and let out a small laugh, though still weak she felt alright for the most part.

"Sorry, I guess I didn't think about how worried you'd be when I saved your butt." Haku retorted warmly, and Naruto let out a chuckle despite himself. He didn't think the joking phase would come so quick, but he didn't mind in the slightest... moments like these were the ones he cherished the most, the moments where they were just _happy_.

"My mistake..." He said, but let a small frown cross his face as he thought about something that had been muffled in his rage. "...Haku-chan..." The girl hummed in response. "...what did you say when you thought you were dying?" The girl stopped for a moment as she tried to remember what she'd said... before it hit her. Could she say it in these conditions? It was so much easier when she thought she wouldn't have to hear his response. _'Ah, screw it.'_

"I said...I love you." Haku said slowly, trying to rein in her mind's attempt to tell her to run and hide. She didn't really know much about these situations, other that they could be extremely tense since you had to wait for the other person's response... which could end up being a major ice breaker... so to speak.

Naruto stayed silent for a few moments, and Haku was honestly beginning to doubt that his response would be to her liking. What she _didn't_ know was that he had the biggest smile on his face that was probably even possible, trying to find his own breath to respond. Clearing his throat and pulling out of the hug, she could see the joy in his features and relaxed a little.

"Well that's good... because I love you too." Naruto replied, and Haku's features brightened to a very noticeable degree. Due to her somewhat pale complexion from spending a lot of time in the misty terrain of the Mizu no Kuni, her bright flush was very obvious. Disregarding her injury, she threw herself at him and began to kiss him passionately, which he happily returned...

Well, until they were interrupted by the remainder of the group walking in anyway. Shizune wore a slight blush of her own, having interrupted the two youngsters. Jiraiya was seemingly scribbling in a notebook – much to Naruto's ire, since he could guess what it was for – while Tsunade just looked on with amusement. Naruto quickly got up, walked over to the door and – just for the hell of it – slammed it in their faces.

"So, we're going now..." Naruto said, once again having been interrupted. It was a pretty annoying exercise to be intimate with your lover when someone kept either knocking the door, or walking in on you... geez, relationships.

**-Back in Konoha- **

It was a mostly uneventful trip back to Konoha for the group of 5 – 6, if you count Tonton... the pig – and they couldn't have been more relieved. After a royal rumble with the snake and four eyes they _really_ didn't want to have to deal with any more crap for the remainder of the week. Naruto had been unconsciously sticking even closer to Haku to the point where she had to pry him off her, though she always wore an amused smile when she did so.

"Finally. Home at last." Naruto said happily, glad to be back in the village that he adored. Tsunade looked around with clear sentimentality. She hadn't been in the village for years, it was nice to see it again... even if it was a little destroyed and beaten up after the Suna/Oto invasion. As the group entered through the gates, they were stopped by a familiar voice.

"Hey, you guys can't just walk in the village, we have gatekeepers for a reason!" Kotetsu shouted over to them from his (rather boring) position behind the desk at the gate. Naruto smirked as he though of a fun way to surprise them, which everyone else quickly noticed.

"Is that any way to talk to the Godaime Hokage?" He retorted, gesturing at Tsunade before being hit over the head by Jiraiya. Wincing and placing a hand on the back of his head, he gave the man a small glare while Izumo and Kotetsu stared at Tsunade in shock, since she was now the first female Hokage and probably the first female Kage! (I have no idea when Mei was appointed Mizukage)

"I swear you are _awful_ at keeping your mouth shut!" Jiraiya muttered, before the group started walking off toward the Hokage tower, completely ignoring the two gatekeepers. After breaking from their reverie, the two just sighed and got back into their seats, not bothering to waste their effort on this new revelation.

"Do we need to be with you from this point on?" Haku asked curiously, wondering if their mission was 'over' yet. Jiraiya shook his head to signify that they didn't, so Haku smiled and grabbed Naruto's arm – though against his will. "...then bye!" She shouted back as she dragged Naruto along like a rag doll. Jiraiya looked on, clearly confused by the sudden attitude switch, but decided to ignore it.

* * *

><p>"If you wanted to find Sasuke and the other's, you could've just said so! I'm a sensor, remember?!" Naruto shouted, clearly annoyed about being dragged half way across Konoha before Haku remembered that she didn't know where she was going. She at least had the decency to seem embarrassed as Naruto closed his eyes to focus.<p>

After a few seconds of searching, he was easily able to identify the familiar and rather unique chakra potency of the Uchiha clan. He knew for a fact that it wasn't Itachi, so that narrowed it down to one person. He also noted that just about all the other rookie nine were there along with him, so there was obviously something going on. Tilting his head to the side, he and Haku slowly walked to the location.

Upon arrival, the two noticed that the group seemed to be talking and generally chatting while Sasuke sat away from the main horde with Karin. It seemed that he'd taken Naruto's advice a little, since usually he'd just be saying nothing and looking rather bored... but he almost seemed happy... it was weird. Obviously Karin – with her almighty **Kagura Shingan (Mind's Eye of Kagura)** sensory ability – was able to detect the two approaching and quickly ran towards them.

"Nii-san, you're back!" The red haired girl exclaimed before tackling Naruto into a hug, which seemed to the custom for their meetings at this point. Naruto patted her back with a smirk, looking rather amused by her overbearing attitude. Her shouting obviously got the attention of the other rookies, who all decided to come over themselves.

"Oh Naruto, your back... great, another troublesome blond." Shikamaru said, clearly bored, – as per usual – though Naruto took no offence by it. The fact that he even bothered saying anything was evidence enough that he was somewhat happy for Naruto to be back. Ino hit him over the head due to the usage of the word 'troublesome' as Naruto let out a small chuckle.

"Nice to see you too, Shikamaru." Naruto replied teasingly, lightly pushing Karin back so he could move. Sasuke decided to get up rather than sit at the back doing nothing, coming over with a smirk, as was his standard... though it was more out of habit at this point. He lightly punched Naruto's shoulder, easing into the conversation.

"Trust you to take forever on a mission, Dobe." Sasuke joked, since the two still found it amusing to have a rivalry/friendship thing. Haku rolled her eyes playfully at the question, crossing her arms under her rather average bust.

"Clearly we aren't up to the _almighty_ Uchiha standards." The Yuki retorted, making Sasuke open his mouth for a moment before closing it and growling slightly.

The rest of the rookies found it nice to see Sasuke's more normal side that only seemed to come out when he was with his team or Karin. Clearly he just wasn't good with social situations yet, finding it easier to just stay mostly quiet. Sakura laughed a little at the boy's lack of a retort to Haku's jab, since it wasn't common for Sasuke to be outplayed.

"Wow Haku, you managed to shut up Sasuke-kun!" Sakura joked, as Sasuke began to grow red with embarrassment. Most of the rookies laughed at the defeated and yet indignant look on his face, since it _really_ wasn't a common occurrence.

Ino then walked over to Sasuke and placed her elbow on the boy's shoulder while lightly chuckling at the look on his face. Karin began to silently and discretely glare at Ino for doing so, since she was openly aware that she had a crush on the Uchiha... though she wasn't aware Sasuke shared the sentiment. Sasuke quickly brushed the girl's elbow off his shoulder, since it just made him uncomfortable.

"Where'd you go anyway Naruto, Haku?" Ino asked curiously, not sure if she was the only one who didn't know. Naruto sighed and brushed a hand through his hair, which made Hinata blush though she was determined not to think about him that way anymore.

"All over the place... looking for Tsunade wasn't easy." Naruto replied, making the rest of the rookies look at him in surprise. Tsunade was a rather famous figure in Konoha and out, since there were few female Shinobi or medic-nin up to her calibre... or even close for that matter.

"Tsunade? The medic-nin, Sannin, that Tsunade? Why were you looking for her?" Hinata asked with interest, as everyone who didn't know who Tsunade was quickly realised why she was important and gave their attention as well. Naruto just smirked and winked at them.

"Oh, you'll see in a few days." Naruto said vaguely, making everyone else look at him in confusion. The conversation continued to rage for a little while longer, with Naruto secretly admiring his friends. He was truly happy to have such good friends, and couldn't have been much happier about his life at the moment.

It was almost too perfect... as though it was getting ready to all fall down.

**-Underground Lair-**

In Danzō's underground lair, the war hawk was planning and scheming once more. His plan to get Naruto into Root had taken a back seat after Hiruzen's death while he planned to get himself appointed Hokage. Things seemed to be going well for him until it became apparent that Jiraiya could get Tsunade for the position, and now he had little to no hope of getting the role, so his original plan was now back in motion.

"Is there any new information you can give me regarding the boy's weaknesses?" Danzō asked curiously. Naturally attempting to get a Jinchūriki to join his ranks by force was a dangerous game, but it was always an option. He would prefer to use his normal methods of subterfuge and behind the scenes work, but it was always nice to know.

"As of yet, none of his enemies has discovered a weakness for the **Shōton** other than pure force. He has a very obvious mental weakness in the form of the Yuki girl." A nameless agent said monotonously. Danzo somewhat scowled at the report, but knew that pure force was always an accessible option. The man then nodded briefly before standing and turning his back on the agent.

"I see. Good work, you are dismissed..." He replied, causing the agent to nod before disappearing. Danzō smiled slightly as he thought of the repercussions of his plan, but that wasn't really an issue.

The village knew little of his darkest deeds, and stealing a Jinchūriki wasn't beneath him... the Shinobi world would quiver beneath the power of Konoha by the time he was done.

**_The Godaime Arrives in Konoha,_**

**_Danzō sets his sights on Naruto!_**

**-****End-**

**For those who didn't understand my subtle pun, 'Kabuto' means Helmet, hence the chapter title. Did anyone find it surprising that I wrote the majority of the fight from his POV? I know I surprised myself, but it works. So yeah, Kabuto is dead. Go figure. **

**Shout out to Cerulean Knight for giving me a pretty awesome idea a while back regarding the Shodaime's Necklace... I ALMOST forgot to give you a shout out for that, but I keep my promises.**

* * *

><p><strong>They say in the times of old, when people were lost and times were hard, the magical art known as reviewing would brighten the path of those who needed them... along with making them smile. <em>Wink wink, nudge nudge<em>**

**Anyway... Review, Favourite and/or Follow. **

**LiamMorg. Out.**

**Ja Ne!**

_*You guys may not be aware of this, but I really dislike the Tsunade Retrieval Arc... it bores me, the pacing is just weird. Plot-wise it doesn't make sense that Jiraiya wasted so much time teaching Naruto the Rasengan when his real goal was to find Tsunade... it's just... ugh, I'm glad it's over. Next arc is original, so woohoo for my inevitable failure._


	23. Peace for a Time

**I don't own Naruto... if I did, I would not get away with the way I killed off Kabuto last chapter.**

**Quote of the chapter/day: "Those at war strive for peace. Unfortunately, peace is always followed by war."**

_**The Frozen Roots Arc**_

**Chapter 22: Peace for a Time**

**-Last Chapter-**

_"As of yet, none of his enemies has discovered a weakness for the Shōton other than pure force. He has a very obvious mental weakness in the form of the Yuki girl." A nameless agent said monotonously. Danzo somewhat scowled at the report, but knew that pure force was always an accessible option. The man then nodded briefly before standing and turning his back on the agent._

_"I see. Good work, you are dismissed..." He replied, causing the agent to nod before disappearing. Danzō smiled slightly as he thought of the repercussions of his plan, but that wasn't really an issue._

_The village knew little of his darkest deeds, and stealing a Jinchūriki wasn't beneath him... the Shinobi world would quiver beneath the power of Konoha by the time he was done._

**-Start-**

A few days had passed since Naruto and the gang's return to Konoha and the ceremony to appoint Tsunade as the Hokage had passed with little issue. It seemed as though the woman was generally accepted as being well suited for the role, since she was the most popular of the Sannin (though her exploits as a medic-nin may have given bias) as well as a strong and clever Shinobi in her own right. Female Shinobi everywhere celebrated the first female Hokage, as well as some men.

It was safe to say that Tsunade's quick appointment as Hokage settled the nerves of the villagers very well, since they were not exactly calm after the attempted – and failed – joint invasion from Otogakure and Sunagakure. It was well known that both villages suffered for the attempt, but the weakened state of Konoha was putting everyone on edge, and the tenseness in the air _was_ palpable.

News of the rather intense battle between the new Hokage and Naruto's group vs. Orochimaru and Kabuto had spread; a small leak of intelligence from some Shinobi who had heard the news. Fortunately, Tsunade had not given enough specific information to make herself look weak nor to incriminate Naruto as being subject to the Kyūbi's impulses. Due to this, some began to give Naruto more respect than usual, some being courteous while others were actually nice... it was a new feeling for the young blond, but not an unwelcome one.

Naruto had also begun helping Karin with her training, so that when the date of her assessment came she would be suitable for the Genin rank. Naturally, there was very little she actually needed to pass the test, since it was mostly comprised of the academy techniques and some basic knowledge of Taijutsu and weapon usage. Naruto wanted to be sure though, and made her learn of her elemental affinity which revealed she had a **Katon** affinity, suiting her personality well.

This was why the two were currently in Training Ground 7 – accompanied by Sasuke, due to his shared affinity – so that she could learn at least one basic **Katon** technique. Naruto wasn't sure whether to teach the girl **Katon: Endan **or **Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu**. Sasuke claimed that the latter was an Uchiha clan rite of passage; required for an Uchiha Shinobi to be considered skilled, yet he was still willing to teach it to the girl. Naruto wasn't sure if this was an act of charity or something else, but accepted it nonetheless.

"You said that the **Katon: Endan** technique requires oil, would she be able to do that without the toad contract?" Sasuke asked curiously, since he wasn't quite sure of the extent of the summoning contact's abilities. Naruto furrowed his brows and brought a hand up to his chin in thought, before shrugging.

"Good point... I'm not entirely sure..." The blond replied, before turning to Karin with a narrowed gaze. "Karin-chan, try creating some oil in your mouth with chakra." He said, making Karin blanch somewhat. The concept of getting oil... in her _mouth_ was not appealing to her in the slightest. She would definitely prefer the fireball, more chakra intensive or not.

"No thanks... I'll go with the fireball." Karin stated quickly with a nervous frown, not wanting to reveal to Naruto that she thought the concept of his technique was disgusting. Naruto moved a little closer to her, an investigative gaze boring into her skull, before moving back and crossing his arms defiantly.

"Pfft, suit yourself... my technique is cooler." Naruto said, muttering the last part to himself while Karin looked on, embarrassed by his somewhat childish attitude. Naruto's attitude then did a complete 180 as he turned to them and clapped his hands together. "...but never mind that, let's begin!" He exclaimed cheerfully, making both Karin and Sasuke raise an eyebrow in scepticism of his weird attitude.

Clicking his fingers to get Karin's attention, Sasuke began to _very_ slowly go through the signs required for the technique, though it was completely possible for him to use half as many signs to get the same result due to his experience.

"**Katon: G****ō****kaky****ū**** no Jutsu!"** Sasuke exclaimed, raising his hand in front of his mouth and creating a ring with his thumb and index finger, before blowing a thin stream of fire through it that expanded significantly into a large fireball that travelled until it consumed a nearby training post.

Naruto whistled at the effects, knowing that without a **Katon** affinity the results he could get would be considerably smaller. Still Sasuke couldn't copy his **Sh****ō****ton**, so he was fine in regards to originality and whatnot. Karin looked rather impressed by the attack, while Sasuke took a deep breath to recover from the lengthy exhale required to blow the fireball for so long.

"And that... was the **Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu**. It takes a little while to get down, since at the start it's kinda hard to get the scale big enough." The Uchiha uttered knowingly, since he had a little difficulty learning it when he was younger. With Karin's reserves, he knew that she'd have no trouble with the chakra aspect, but it was still difficult actually creating enough fire to use.

"Fair enough, Sasuke-_sensei_." Karin replied teasingly, making Sasuke's eye twitch. It was weird for her to call him sensei, since they were around the same age. He would definitely prefer to just be called his name.

"Please... don't call me that, it makes me feel old." Sasuke answered with a deep breath, clutching the bridge of his nose between his index and ring fingers while his eyes were shut. Naruto chuckled at the sound of exasperation in his voice, while Karin just smirked victoriously. Then, Naruto had a thought.

"Hey, Iruka-sensei is in his early twenties, don't overestimate the age of our teachers." Naruto retorted informatively. Sasuke thought it over for a few seconds before shaking his head swiftly to stop himself.

"Whatever, we're getting off topic here!" Sasuke exclaimed. Karin and Naruto had the decency to look sheepish at the reprimand, but quickly recovered from it. Naruto placed a finger to his chin as he thought over a few minor details about the technique that Karin was trying to learn; the **Katon: Gōkakyū**** no Jutsu** could be utilized in a few different ways.

It was strangely very common for basic **Katon** techniques to have at least two varieties in the way they could be employed. For example, the **Katon: Endan** could be used as a large and quick flaming bullet, a continuous stream of fire or multiple smaller bullets fired in quick succession. For this reason, it seemed as though fire was the best element for beginners, as a single technique gave many different options.

"Oh and Karin-chan, there are certain techniques that can be used rather differently, despite being initiated the same way. I'm not experienced with this technique so Sasuke will have to give you the details." Naruto said suddenly, making Sasuke nod in affirmation. To be honest, he preferred the normal fireball form, but it could be employed in a different way.

"Right. This technique can be used as a ball of fire – like I just did – or as a large, wide jet of flames. Personally I prefer the fireball." Sasuke announced almost wisely, as Naruto looked on with a small smirk.

He never really coloured Sasuke as the teaching type – since he was a bit too moody and antisocial. It was clear Sasuke appreciated strength, so teaching people who may not be very skilled didn't seem to fit the bill, but he was doing just fine here. Karin took this all in with a few nods here and there, before smiling.

"Guess I should give it a go then..." The red-head started, going through the seals – if a little clumsily – at a decent pace, before raising her own hand the same way Sasuke did. **"...Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu!"** She called out, blowing out a thin stream of fire that expanded into a fireball noticeably smaller than Sasuke's, but still larger than the Uchiha anticipated.

Naruto nodded with a critical frown, looking over the technique and – through sensory – checking the way she was managing her chakra internally. He could see she was doing it just about right, the only real flaw was the amount of chakra she used, but that was due to inexperience, rather than a flaw on her side. Sasuke frowned – seemingly upset with how quickly she picked the technique up – before washing it away with a small smile.

"Good work Karin, that was much better than I was when I started learning it." Sasuke complimented warmly, a surprisingly genuine smile on his face. Karin blushed from the praise, finding it rather comforting to be complimented by her crush/love interest. She did realise something when she thought it over though...

Naruto looked on with narrowed eyes. _'Wait a minute, what's going on here? Does Sasuke... like her too?' _The blond thought to himself with surprise. He wasn't really expecting it to be that easy. Karin had been pretty easy to get an answer out of, but she seemed to be the type of person to wear her emotions on her sleeve.

"Oh, and how old _were_ you when you learnt this?" Karin asked inquisitively. Sasuke looked away slightly, crossing his arms in defeat. He was hoping that she wouldn't ask that, since it would make her look.. well, worse.

"Uh... seven..." Sasuke replied, making Karin deflate considerably. "...but, I _was_ considered a prodigy and I started learning Shinobi-related things at a much younger age than normal." He added, trying to ease her off a little. Karin narrowed her eyes at him for a few moments and found little deception, so she shrugged and relaxed herself.

"Hmm... fine." The red-head said after a few moments of silence. Naruto noticed that Sasuke let out a breath of relief and let a sly smirk rise to his face. _'Oh, this is going to be fun...'_ The blond thought to himself, before looking down at his new necklace with interest. Touching it briefly, it began to shine before the light died down to nothing.

He'd thought about the necklace quite a bit since he received it from Tsunade... and he was very interested in its origins. It was clear that the necklace was somewhat resonating with him, or more specifically – the **Sh****ō****ton**, and he _really_ wanted to know why. The necklace belonged to the Shodaime Hokage and was apparently useful for improving his Bijū-suppressing abilities, but that had little to do with the **Sh****ō****ton** so he simply couldn't place the connection.

He would have to remember to inquire with Tsunade regarding the necklace's origins, but for now he had other important duties to deal with. He had many things he needed to learn or improve, his Ninjutsu for one, training his bloodline, improving his physical abilities, learning Kenjutsu, learning Fūinjutsu... it was simply a lot of work.

"Right, I gotta run guys..." Naruto said, before turning and walking away. "...Sasuke, remember to teach her about how each element reacts with the others!" He shouted over his shoulder, making Sasuke slap himself in the face for forgetting such an important lesson. **Katon** was one of the most obvious ones, since water obviously had an advantage, but if she'd been a **F****ū****ton** user... that would have been a bad thing to forget.

"Right, now comes the annoying part..." Sasuke muttered as Karin looked at him expectantly. _'Why did you leave me Dobe?!'_ Sasuke mentally exclaimed, he wasn't prepared for this crap!

_**TRANSITION!**_

Naruto was stood in the same clearing that he'd learned the water walking exercise, since despite the fact it wasn't an actual training ground he found it had everything he needed. It was quite an attractive location as well, the water would sparkle in the sunlight and the trees were very alive, along with the grass on the ground.

The reason he was there was because he decided his project for the day: advancing his **Kekkei Genkai**. He hadn't made massive progress with his bloodline, but he knew it could be quite... messy when crystal structures started to build up. The current project was based on a technique his mother was capable of due to her very strong chakra, and he wanted to somewhat replicate it.

"Right... picture a long, controllable whip-like structure." Naruto said aloud, as was the norm when he was training alone. Some would say that talking to ones self was a sign of madness, but it was actually quite a useful tool for focusing ones thoughts.

Picturing the image he required, he began thinking about hand seals. It was said that hand seals were a simple chakra-focusing exercise to make techniques more simple to create, but it was also a source of confusion regarding just _how_ people chose which hand seals to use. Despite that, he noticed that he ended up using a very specific sequence of seals when using certain **Sh****ō****ton** techniques, despite the fact he'd not been taught any, so it must've been simple instinct.

Closing his eyes, he began to picture what needed while letting his hands do their own thing. He may not have been aware, but he was actually quite adept in one-handed seals, which were a 'you can or you can't' sort of deal. Due to the nature of one-handed seals, none of his seals were identifiable when using them, since they physically couldn't fall under the base 12 seals. Opening his eyes as he finished a small sequence of seals, he felt words form in his mind.

"**Shōton: Kagayakurasshu (Crystal Release: Sparkling Lash)!" **He called out, barely registering the ease he had with naming the technique. Long green crystal whips and lashes then began to burst from the ground and started forming on the water's surface, with a small amount of water crystallizing around them. They began to wave menacingly, but obviously had no targets to interact with. Naruto smiled at the completion, but assumed they could do better if he trained the technique. He instructed a lash to attack a nearby tree, and it instantly contorted and speared at the tree, going straight through it.

"This will be useful... seems like I can use this for more than just combat too." The blond noted, before pulling out a small scroll. He'd taken to registering any **Shōton** technique he used in the scroll, so any children or descendants he had that would potentially awaken the **Shōton** could use them. It was quite important to him to do so, since he didn't want his descendants to have to completely start from scratch like he did. Some would find it strange that he was thinking about such things at his age, but he didn't care.

After finishing his description and list of hand seals in the scroll, he put it away and sat down against a nearby tree. Ever since he'd improved his intelligence and awakened his bloodline, he'd felt at home in nature... it was weird, but he felt as though he was attuned to the very earth he was sitting on. Maybe it was because the **Shōton** was born of a powerful **Doton** affinity, but he felt it deep in his mind.

He spent the next hour continuing to mess around with the techniques he already knew, along with getting used to the technique he'd just added to his arsenal. It was a little weird to command crystals as though his mind was linked to them, but with the necklace on it hardly seemed difficult. Naruto would have seen the necklace shinning a bright green colour whenever he used the **Shōton**, if he'd been paying attention to it.

Looking around the clearing and marvelling in it's peaceful atmosphere and rather beautiful appearance, he couldn't help but think that Haku would probably love it here. That brought a strange idea to his mind, which in turn caused him to blush lightly while a bright smile overcame his face.

_'I never did take her on a real date, did I?' _Was his last thought before leaving.

_**TRANSITION!**_

Elsewhere in Konoha, a certain black haired, creamy skinned girl was thinking about her own abilities. Since coming to Konoha, she'd all but perfected her skill with **Suiton**, since she was pretty damn good at it anyway. She also got a noteworthy education in **F****ū****ton**, which neither her nor Zabuza had much skill in. She'd advanced her bloodline, her physical conditioning and she'd gained a passable Taijutsu form... her skill with medicines – while not regularly necessary – had been improved due to Konoha's extra availability to medical herbs.

Despite all that, she wasn't exactly pleased. Sure she was a very capable Shinobi – some may even call her exceptional for a Genin, even though she was fully capable of being a Chūnin – but she didn't feel like she'd found her focus yet. She was mostly a weapon expert and Ninjutsu specialist, but that didn't feel like enough, not to mention she'd somewhat ignored her bloodline for a while.

She'd recently created a new **Hy****ō****ton** technique through her improved skill in wind manipulation, which had opened new doors for her, so that was something. Still maybe she could pick up a new skill, like Naruto was trying to do with Fūinjutsu and Kenjutsu. Bukijutsu applied to a wide range of different weapons and skills, maybe she could find one that suited her?

She shook her head at that thought, it would be wise to focus on her current elemental affinities and basic skills until she attained a good mastery of them, since branching out too much could lead to her overall skill level to be underdeveloped. Naruto knew what he was doing, he was a smart guy... but she'd prefer to play it safe for the time being.

"I'll worry about this later... I don't feel like training right now." Haku muttered to herself, leaving her home. It'd been a long while since she'd first come to Konoha, when the Sandaime Hokage had been generous enough to simply give her a fair apartment that she'd lived in since. Now that she was an actual Shinobi, she was actually paying for the apartment, but it was still nice. She could understand why Naruto had been so fond of the man, he was a good soul.

Striding through the streets of Konoha at around mid-day, Haku wasn't exactly sure where she had been intending to go. The village was a nice place to live, and she didn't exactly have much difficulty settling in. Simply wandering around was quite nostalgic to her early days in the village, when she had no idea where she was going and was still impressed by the atmosphere.

As she continued to wander, she saw the familiar and distinct pink hair of her pseudo-teammate. She still wasn't quite sure how their team actually worked anymore, since she _was_ – all things considered – a simple replacement for Sakura after her injury. Naruto continued to stress they were a team, but that was a guess on his part and it was clear from his tone of voice that he was trying to convince himself too.

"Sakura!" Haku called out to the other girl, who stopped in her stride to see Haku jogging calmly over to her with a friendly smile. Smiling back, Sakura closed the distance with a walk. Something Haku had somehow failed to notice was Sakura's new hairstyle, now a fair amount shorter than before. It could be assumed she did so to be less vulnerable in the field, but Haku never worried about that due to her long-range preference.

"Hey Haku, where are you going?" Sakura asked the other girl, who she probably had the least experience with out of the rookies due to her annoying coma. It was still a sore spot for her, and her parents were both overjoyed and pissed when she woke up. Overjoyed that she was actually going to wake up, and pissed that she basically got herself into it by being a human shield... just like Haku did.

Despite their lack of interaction, Haku felt a connection with the pinkette... though it may be due to their shared affinity, the fact that Sakura was the first girl she befriended and that they trained together for a few weeks before the unfortunately timed coma. The Yuki girl felt bad when she heard she had missed an opportunity to visit Sakura after she awoke, but the other girl wasn't really mad due to the hectic time before the Chūnin Exam Finals.

"Nowhere specific, I was sort of wandering... and you?" Haku stated, before issuing the same question to the other girl. Sakura's face turned a little nervous at the posed question, meaning that she was planning on doing something difficult or worrisome.

"I was thinking of asking Tsunade-sama to take me... as an apprentice." Sakura answered slowly, to which Haku raised her eyebrows in surprise. It wasn't unheard of, but for a Genin to become a medic-nin was quite rare, so it would certainly be an interesting skill for Sakura to possess. It would fit her quite well too, due to her chakra control.

"Oh! Thinking of being a medic-nin? That sounds like it'd suit you quite well." The Yuki exclaimed supportively. To be fair, she had no need to support Sakura since the girl was bound to get accepted if she could demonstrate her finely tuned chakra control, but it was always nice to give some positive reinforcement.

"Thanks..." The pinkette said, before another thought came to mind. "...hey, you wanna tag along? You said you were just wandering, right?" She continued, making Haku think it over for a moment before shrugging with a friendly smile and nod. The two then made their way comfortably towards the Hokage tower.

_**TRANSITION!**_

In the Hokage's office, the blond haired Slug Summoning member of the Densetsu no Sannin, now known as the Godaime Hokage was doing the arguably worst job that the Hokage ever had to deal with... along with being the most common: Paperwork. Tsunade let out a groan of annoyance as Shizune walked in with even more of the stuff, making Tsunade whimper pathetically.

"This is torture! Jiraiya, Naruto, I blame you for this hell I'm being forced to endure!" The Godaime shouted angrily, making Shizune laugh at her attitude, since Tsunade just needed to get comfortable with the role... right? When she placed the extra paperwork down on the desk Tsunade just shot her an annoyed glare before muttering and getting back to work.

"I'm sure it'll get easier Tsunade-sama, you just need to stay positive!" Shizune replied, though she _was_ admittedly finding the whole ordeal rather entertaining. Tsunade huffed at her, while stamping the 50th document in the last 10 minutes... with at least 100 more to go, for now.

"I'll be positive alright... when I'm breaking that pervert in half." The female member of the Sannin announced, with a surprising amount of cheer in her voice. It seemed as though hurting Jiraiya was a sort of pass time for her, even if it was inadvertent. Shizune shook her head at the statement when the two heard a knock on the door.

Tsunade called them in and instantly the door swung open to reveal the familiar face of Haku, who gave a smile and wave to the two, which Shizune returned while Tsunade just lazily waved while leaning on the table. The other occupant was a pink haired girl that neither fully recognised, but Tsunade somewhat recognised her from somewhere.

"Shizune, get me the Rookie Genin file will you?" Tsunade asked quietly, since she was sure she recognised Sakura's face from somewhere. She had taken the liberty of picking out Shinobi of all ranks that had the obvious potential to become medic-nin, and she knew a single rookie Genin fell into her list.

"Of course, Tsunade-sama." The black haired woman replied, before walking out of the room, smiling at the two young girls on her way out. Haku then looked over at Sakura, who was apparently trying to build up the resolve to ask Tsunade her question. The older girl gave Sakura a slight nudge with her elbow, making the other girl let out a cough and walk forward a little.

"Excuse our interruption Tsunade-sama, but I'd like to ask you for a favour." Sakura said confidently, now having found her voice. Tsunade narrowed her eyes at the girl inquisitively, trying to size the girl up. She knew the girl was a Genin by her age and she could tell that the girl was somewhat confident in her abilities based on the way she carried herself.

It was then that Shizune walked back into the room and passed the file to Tsunade, who opened it and flicked through a few pages before pausing and reading a little. It was as she thought, Sakura was one of the only Genin who got her mark of possibility, regarding medic-nin training. She looked back at the girl, her interest now spiked.

"Oh, and what might that be?" Tsunade asked commandingly, seemingly having already gotten the voice and tone down for the Hokage role. Sakura gulped at the booming voice of the otherwise beautiful Godaime, before locking eyes with the woman. Meanwhile, Haku was leaning against the doorway and looking at her nails, off-handedly watching the events.

"I'd like to become your apprentice; I want to be a medic-nin." Sakura said, trying her hardest to convey her resolve. Tsunade fought back the smirk that attempted to worm its way onto her face, since the events were going better than expected. _'Well this all worked out for me, didn't it?' _The newest Kage said mentally.

Since she didn't want to seem obvious, Tsunade looked on with a hard and questioning gaze for a few moments, to try and instil a bit of fear into the young pinkette. The truth was that she was more than happy to give someone who had the potential to be a medic-nin the chance to become one, but she couldn't exactly seem easy going.

"Alright. I shall accept you as my apprentice." Tsunade said, breaking the forced silence. Sakura blinked for a few moments before smiling brightly and jumping a little while Haku gave her a girl-hug (since it was socially acceptable for girls to do so). It was at that moment that Naruto walked in, seeming deep in thought.

"Haku-chan, Sakura... what are you two doing here?" Naruto asked curiously, before noticing they were busy and rolling his eyes. "...never mind. Tsunade-sama I'd like to ask you something." He continued, with Tsunade noticing his very respectful tone. She got the impression that he was capable of showing respect, but he hadn't shown her much since they'd met... though that was mostly her fault.

"Oh, respecting me now are you?" Tsunade asked jokingly, while Sakura silently glared at Naruto for the implied disrespect he showed her before. Haku laughed somewhat nervously at the statement, since she remembered Naruto got rather annoyed with Tsunade's previous attitude when they met.

"It's only logical that a Shinobi respect their Kage." Naruto answered as though he was answering a test question. Tsunade raised an eyebrow at the answer, but judging from his devotion to the Hokage position it was sort of a no-brainer that he respected those who bore the title. A smirk rose to her face as she leaned on her hands.

"Well you didn't show me much respect _before _I accepted the role." The buxom blond retorted knowingly. Naruto let out a small laugh at the jab, knowing full well what she was talking about and while he did somewhat regret it, everything he had said was the truth so he wasn't going to take it back.

"Yes well, you _were_ being quite difficult." Naruto answered knowingly, crossing his arms in defiance to her attempted guilt-trip. Tsunade huffed out a quick laugh, leaning back in her chair to signify she somewhat agreed.

"Alright I get it..." Tsunade conceded, before her businesslike expression appeared. "...now what exactly is it you need Naruto?" She continued, making Sakura look on with surprise at the somewhat comfortable atmosphere between Naruto and the new Hokage. It was clear that he'd made a good impression on her.

Naruto pulled the Shodaime's necklace out from under his mesh shirt and looked it over for a few moments while it once again began to glow upon his touch. He furrowed his brows in confusion at the feeling that the glow was accompanied by, since he could feel himself being more... complete when the energy was being released.

"Where did Hashirama get this necklace, or at least the crystal on it?" The only boy out of the five people in the room asked seriously. Tsunade raised an eyebrow at the usage of her grandfather's name, but decided to ignore it. To be honest, she herself had looked for this information and had inquired about it when he gave it to her. He – for some reason – refused to answer.

Sakura and Haku were both shocked by the mention of the Shodaime's name, along with the fact that Naruto apparently possessed his personal necklace. Haku briefly remembered seeing it but completely ignored it while Naruto had simply forgotten to bring it up.

"You have a necklace owned by the Shodaime!?" Sakura shrieked, making many people in the room cover their ears, while Naruto turned over to her clearly not amused by the ear piercing sound she just released. It used to be a pretty common thing, but she'd gotten it under control recently... for the most part.

"Sakura. Pitch." Naruto said knowingly, making Sakura blink a few times before laughing sheepishly. It was actually a pretty normal thing for them to inform her when she was going the shrieking, so that she would realise what she was doing and stop. How she didn't know she was doing it was beyond them, but maybe she'd just adapted.

"Oh right... sorry." Sakura said apologetically while Naruto turned his attention back to Tsunade, who had her eyes closed and her brows furrowed. Shizune looked on with interest, since this was a topic she'd never thought to broach to the woman. Tsunade then opened her eyes and looked seriously at Naruto.

"I have no idea where he got it, he refused to tell me." The Hokage replied, surprising Naruto considerably. It was left in his care – presumably by the man himself – and yet she had no idea where it was from? It seemed very unusual, that was for sure.

"What do you mean 'he refused'? Why would he refuse?" Naruto asked, pretty flabbergasted by the entire concept. It was a mere necklace, – no matter how powerful it may or may not have been – it shouldn't have been dangerous or secretive enough to withhold the location it originated from, especially not from one's own descendants.

Tsunade thought back to the time when she received the Necklace as a young girl, or at least her early teens. Kami, it seemed like so long ago for the now near-fifty woman. The man had entrusted the Necklace to her before heading out to the battle that would become his last, but not before leaving her with a very confusing statement.

"His exact words were_ "I made a promise, and I shall never speak of THAT place."_. Think of that as you will, but I never understood what he was talking about." Tsunade answered, having never forgotten throughout her long life the riddle she was left with. Naruto looked completely confused and was inwardly trying to deduce the reason for the man saying what he did... it was simply too strange and seemingly illogical.

"I understand... well actually I _don't_ understand, but thanks anyway." Naruto said, thanking the woman for her time. Tsunade flashed him a smile, which apparently meant she was happy to help in whatever useless way she had just done. Naruto was so confused by the answer that he walked out without another word. Haku huffed in annoyance that he didn't ask her to come with him, before running off after him. Sakura was then left in the room with her new teacher and Shizune.

"So, when do we start Shishou?

_**TRANSITION!**_

"Geez, slow down will you?" Haku called out after Naruto, who had basically been power walking all the way through the Hokage tower and out. Naruto turned around with a raised brow, before remembering that Haku was indeed present in Tsunade's office. Chuckling at his own stupidity, he waited for her to catch up.

"Oh uh... sorry, I was deep in thought." The blond replied apologetically. Haku shook her head while rolling her eyes playfully, knowing full well that he was deep in thought. If she was honest, she'd be just as confused if she was interested in the origins of the necklace, which – to be frank – she wasn't.

She had to admit though, she found his interest in the necklace to be quite interesting, since there was obviously an event or something that sparked this sudden interest in it. She'd have to worm the information out of him, in some way.

"I could tell, it wasn't really that hard to guess..." She replied topically, making Naruto shrug his shoulders. "...the thing I don't know is why you seem so interested in that necklace all of a sudden." This statement made Naruto furrow his brows, since he wasn't quite sure how to explain it. Saying that it resonated with him and empowered _his_ ability, the **Shōton**, would be a good start... but that wasn't it.

"It's a little difficult to explain... the necklace seems to respond to my **Kekkei Genkai** specifically..." The blond stated, pulling the necklace out and showing Haku the glow that came from his touch, along with causing a small green crystal to start growing from the ground. Haku looked on with great interest at the apparent link between the necklace of the Shodaime and Naruto, since it hardly made sense... sure, his wife was an Uzumaki but she wasn't linked to his bloodline.

"Do you mind if I look at it?" Haku asked curiously. Naruto shrugged and pulled it over his head, before handing it to her. To his defence, the necklace had no reaction from her touch and she felt nothing from the presence of it on her. It seemed as though the necklace truly did have a preference and she had no idea why.

"_**UGH! FINALLY you took off that damned necklace!" **_Kurama shouted, seemingly very frustrated by the presence of the necklace. Naruto furrowed his brows in confusion at the angry statement, not sure why Kurama cared.

"_Uh... why was it a problem?" _Naruto asked with confusion, not entirely sure what the issue here was. Kurama snorted in what seemed like annoyance before growling angrily once more, while Haku was still trying to make the necklace do something.

"_**The mere existence of that necklace is infuriating, the ability to suppress me and my kin should not be accessible to a damned sparkling stone! I mean... come on, why is this village in possession of everything that can ruin my freedom! First the Sharingan, then the Mokuton... now this damned necklace! Why Konoha?!" **_ Kurama raged, while Naruto listened on with a mixture of confusion and amusement. It seemed to him like Kurama was just being childish about the fact that he could be suppressed at all, the fact that he owned the necklace now just got Kurama going.

"_Are you just being bitter?" _Naruto asked, the smirk on his face nearly being audible in his statement. Kurama growled indignantly at the jab, but the problem was... that Naruto wasn't exactly wrong.

"_**...Yes." **_Kurama admitted, making Naruto chuckle heartily before cutting the link. Meanwhile Haku had finished her little examination of the necklace and could safely say that Naruto was indeed right, it only seemed to respond to him and possibly the **Mokuton**... it was weird, what did they have in common, other than...

"Could it have something to do with earth-based **Kekkei Genkai**?" Haku asked suddenly, making Naruto stop in place while his mind worked quickly. It would explain it, both the **Mokuton **and **Shōton **were created with **Doton**, and earth was the key feature in both of them... sure, water was pretty essential to grow trees but earth and soil was the main feature.

"That... could make sense." Naruto answered after a few moments. How he didn't think of it was beyond him, but he didn't exactly care... Haku was pretty smart in her own right and – if he was being honest – far more experienced than he was. That made him wonder, did she even know basic Shinobi techniques like the **Bushin no Jutsu**? She never received formal training, so it's entirely possible that Zabuza skipped over those.

_'Let's think about it... The Mokuton and Shōton are both earth-based Kekkei Genkai, but does the link go deeper than that? What does earth represent... nature? Could that be it?'_ Naruto thought to himself questioningly. It was the best deduction he could come up with at the moment and it seemed to fit the bill in some form, maybe that was it.

"You know, this isn't important... I'm sure I'll unravel this little mystery at some point." Naruto stated as he began to walk off, Haku on his trail.

_**TRANSITION!**_

About two weeks passed and from that point on, the village had begun to gain stability once more due in no small part to the new Hokage. The Shinobi within the village were now getting missions again and the general work load had gone back up to normal levels. Tsunade had made it a priority to fix the walls of Konoha and the important military assets to ward off any potential invaders, which was getting underway.

Unfortunately for Naruto and the other rookies, the physical damage and somewhat hectic repairs of the village meant there were a lot more D-Rank borefests... I mean missions to go around. The Genin generally seemed to be working within the village at the moment, though it was being rumoured that Genin may start getting important assignments due to the reduced military power the village was left with after the invasion.

Karin had passed her little evaluation easily enough, since Tsunade hardly had the time to make the Genin requirements more strict with all the fallout from the invasion, so all Karin really required was the academy-level techniques (which Naruto helped her do, since she couldn't do the **Bushin no Jutsu** properly either). She had managed to get the **Katon: G****ō****kaky****ū**** no Jutsu **down easily enough, much to Sasuke's amazement.

Sakura had started her training with Tsunade during her free time, and she was obviously somewhat of a natural in the art. It was pretty hilarious that she had to attempt to resuscitate a fish to get her skills up to scratch, but Sakura made it clear that she wouldn't take the jokes lying down.

Naruto had also started training Fūinjutsu along with Karin, which was interesting to say the least...

"Karin-chan! Stop throwing those faulty seals in the sink, that won't stop the reaction! We've been through this!"

"Sorry, I panic! They start fizzling and I freak out!"

"Ugh, my apartment is gonna be wrecked by the time we get this down..."

These were the various shouts that Haku heard as she was about to knock Naruto's door. She briefly stood out there, pondering if it was a good idea – or even a _safe _idea – to get in between the two Fūinjutsu trainees right now. Sighing, she knocked the door and waited.

The door swung open to reveal Naruto holding a scroll and ink brush, looking pretty serious and determined despite the obvious trouble they were going through. Haku briefly smiled at his work ethic, before shaking her head and clearing her throat.

"Is... uh... this a bad time?" Haku asked cautiously, since she _really_ didn't want to end up on some sort of report detailing a Fūinjutsu related accident in Naruto's apartment building. It would probably reflect badly on her if she was in the middle of... whatever this was.

Naruto blinked at her a few times before tilting his head in confusion, apparently not understanding why she might have thought that. It was actually quite funny, since he seemed to be in a pretty good mood and stable mind set despite the signs of duress she heard though the door, though he may have just been a very good actor.

"Nah, come on in... though you might have to keep an eye on Karin-chan." Naruto said invitingly, though his face showed signs of obvious irritation when he mentioned Karin. The girl in question groaned in annoyance at the subtle insult, before slamming her palm down on the table, which caused some things to fall off.

"Dammit, it only happened like... three times! Stop bringing it up!" Karin raged, clearly not as controlled nor calm as Naruto was. The blond turned to her with a flat expression, his eyebrow raised in obvious disagreement.

"Four. Four times, since you just did it again ten seconds ago." He retorted matter-of-factly. Karin opened her mouth to retort in turn, but found that he was correct. Blushing in embarrassment as well as indignation, she turned her head to the side slightly.

Haku was seriously considering running out and not coming back for at least another hour, since the two were at each other's throats and it was pretty clear that they had no intention of stopping. They really were like siblings, since they got along well at times and were bickering like children at others, though Naruto wouldn't give that impression.

"Yeah well, you did it too..." Karin muttered in a meek come back. Naruto smirked at his victory, since he had yet another way to further the argument in his direction. Karin really was too easy, she was way too similar to the way he used to be, so it made it rather easy to reply to her since she knew exactly what she'd be thinking.

"Once, right before you did it in the _exact_ way I did." Naruto replied, the smirk and enjoyment clear in his expression and voice respectively. Haku chuckled at the bickering, it was quite cute... she just didn't want to have to deal with it all the time.

Karin just decided to glare at him before going back to her work, attempting to make at least one functional exploding tag. Honestly the Uzumaki duo had to give credit to whoever made the things, they were pretty volatile... and were a bitch to make quickly. Naruto had – with some effort – managed to make one, though it was pretty weak compared to the store-bought versions.

"So, what exactly are you two doing?" Haku asked curiously, having absolutely no knowledge of Fūinjutsu. This was probably what normal people felt like when they saw Shinobi creating clones and illusions, since it all seemed so... unreal to her. The concept that these strange symbols and patterns could affect the physical world was almost laughable, and yet completely true.

"She's trying to make a functional and _stable_ explosive tag..." Naruto started, getting a middle finger from Karin who didn't even bother looking up. "...while _I _am trying to make one of these strange storage seals that can be applied to just about anything, like a wrist band... for example." He continued, gesturing to a description in his mother's scroll. Haku nodded in what seemed like affirmation, but really she had no freaking idea what he was talking about.

Naruto started slowly and carefully drawing out a few copies of the diagram in the scroll, since it was the exact design required for the seal to work. After he copied out a few purely non-functional designs of the seal, he picked up a small strip of what seemed like bandage, before drawing it once more on the material.

He then proceeded to look it over for a few moments under Haku's watchful eye, and she had to admit that he seemed pretty committed and serious about learning Fūinjutsu, since he had that 'spark' in his eye that signified great determination and interest. After looking it over for a few more seconds, Naruto abruptly stood up, walked calmly over to what seemed like a chest composed entirely of crystal before throwing the bandage in and closing it. After a short wait, a muffled bang could be heard from within.

"See Karin? THAT is where you are supposed to put the volatile seals!" Naruto urged knowingly, his arms extended to the side as some sort of gesture. Karin waved a hand over her shoulder, again not bothering to look away from what she was doing. Naruto could compliment her attention span and working attitude at least.

"Yeah yeah, whatever." The red-head muttered non-committally. Naruto wasn't sure whether to be annoyed or happy that she refused to spare him a glance, but decided to go with neither and completely ignore it. Walking back to his seat, he shot Haku a glance and – after a few moments of staring – slapped himself in the face.

"You must have come over for a reason, right?" He asked, getting a smirk and nod from Haku and a discrete head shake from Karin. "...of course you did... did you need something, or did you just want to... uh... see me?" He continued, actually feeling a little uncomfortable talking about this with Karin in the room. The red-head giggled at his expense while finishing her seal and looking it over.

Haku meanwhile pulled out a small book and placed it on the table. It was apparently some sort of history book specifically on Hashirama Senju. Naruto quickly pieced two and two together, realising that this was her way of helping out with the mystery of his necklace. He gave her a quick kiss on the cheek before opening the book. Well he tried to, before a certain someone interrupted him...

"SUCCESS!" Karin shouted loudly, making Naruto jump in surprise before turning to glare at her. Karin quickly sat back down – having stood up in her apparent success – before blushing with embarrassment.

"You are so lucky I wasn't making my own seal, I definitely would have messed up with your shouting." The blond said with certainty, making Karin ruffle the back of her hair with embarrassment. He then proceeded to roll his eyes before opening the book Haku gave him. "...well, let's get started I guess." He muttered, beginning to read the long book.

He would probably be at it for a while.

_**Peace settles into Konoha, **_

_**The calm before the storm!**_

**-****End-**

**Lots of filler to get the gears greased and whatnot, so prepare for madness next chapter. This chapter was mostly a bridge between the last arc and the new one.**

**Some discrete lore about the Shodaime's Necklace. The mystery continues to grow... and this will be very relevant later in the story.**

**Anyway... Review, Favourite and/or Follow. **

**LiamMorg. Out.**

**Ja Ne!**

**-Original Technique(s)-**

**(Note: From now on picture these technique descriptions in Naruto's scroll; think of them as canon. I think it's a fun idea! Pretend I wrote hand seals though, since it would take _way_ too much effort for me to design those too.)**

**Shōton: Kagayakurasshu (Crystal Release: Sparkling Lash): **The user crystallises a substance to create a whip/lash consisting entirely of a malleable crystal. This crystal is less durable than most because of its increased fluidity. These whips can be used to grab an enemy, impale them or for other tertiary uses. Can be materialised from the users body, water or the ground. (B-Rank. Offensive, Defensive, Supplementary)


	24. The Shattered Heart

**I don't own Naruto... if I did, I would probably need to read Japanese folklore and mythology to get some inspiration. **

**Before any newcomers inevitably complain at the end of this chapter, don't. I've heard it all and I tire of the unnecessary comments. Yes, this statement was placed in an update. **

_**The Frozen Roots Arc**_

_**Quote of the chapter/day: "Our hearts are fickle, often taking years to find someone they accept as 'the one'. What happens when that person is ripped away, do we move on or be torn asunder?"**_

**Chapter 23: The Shattered Heart**

**-Last Chapter-**

"_SUCCESS!" Karin shouted loudly, making Naruto jump in surprise before turning to glare at her. Karin quickly sat back down – having stood up in her apparent success – before blushing with embarrassment. _

"_You are so lucky I wasn't making my own seal, I definitely would have messed up with your shouting." The blond said with certainty, making Karin ruffle the back of her hair with embarrassment. He then proceeded to roll his eyes before opening the book Haku gave him. "...well, let's get started I guess." He muttered, beginning to read the long book. _

_He would probably be at it for a while. _

**-Start-**

Slamming the book closed, Naruto let out a lengthy sigh. "Nothing! Not a teeny mention of the necklace! Who the hell wrote this?!" The blond exclaimed with irritation. He'd taken at least half an hour to read all the relevant information, and not one sentence was relevant enough. The closest he'd come was '...the Shodaime was regularly seen with a strange crystal necklace that apparently amplified his Bijū suppression ability...'

"Probably someone with insight on the Shodaime." Karin retorted with a giant grin, since she'd enjoyed his suffering quite a bit. Despite his intelligence, he still seemed very... opposed to lengthy reading periods. Haku rolled her eyes at Karin's rather poor remark, while Naruto laughed sarcastically.

"Really funny Karin-chan. I'm in stitches." Naruto muttered out with obvious boredom. He lowered his head to rest on his hand – his arm leaning on the table – before sighing once more. He wasn't completely opposed to reading, but pointless reading that got him nothing in return was excruciating.

Standing up, Naruto rolled his neck quickly, causing many 'clicks' to be heard from it. Haku's face convulsed in distaste of the rather gross sounds while Karin just shook her head once more. He then picked up the book and held it out to Haku, trying to look as grateful as he could for her attempt to help.

"Thanks for getting this, even if it was a dead end." The blond stated a little awkwardly, as Haku took the book off him and held it to her chest before smirking and leaning forward to kiss him softly on the lips. Karin pretended to gag at the sappy action, though in all honesty she found it romantic.

"No need to thank me, I told you before that I want to help you in any way I can." The black-haired girl said with a small blush, a little embarrassed at her forwardness in front of Karin who – after a few moments – began to smirk teasingly.

"Get a room you two!" The red-head teased jokingly. Naruto smirked in response to the teasing, while Haku blushed further.

"Your in _my_ apartment, so technically you should be getting _out_ of my room..." Naruto retorted cleverly, making Karin's expression dim noticeably as she thought about it. "...oh, and how are things going with Sasuke_-kun_ hmm?" He continued tauntingly. Karin blushed brightly, turning away and crossing her arms.

"S-shut up! I never should have talked to you about that..." She muttered in response. Haku – who had not been informed of the events – raised an eyebrow and looked at Naruto questioningly, but he just waved her off. Teasing was one thing, but Karin had told him that in confidence.

Naruto looked out his window to see it was getting a little late. _'Huh, could have sworn it was sunny as can be a few minutes ago...'_ Naruto thought to himself idly. Looking around his apartment at the occasional gathering of powder and burn marks from various minor explosions, Naruto frowned at the work it would take to fix the place up.

"So, as fun as this has been it's getting a little late and... well, I need to clean my apartment." Naruto said, obviously implying that the other occupants take their leave. Karin smiled embarrassedly, remembering how most of the mess was from her while Haku winked at him before leaving.

"Sorry about all this, you want some help?" Karin offered, feeling guilty about the mess she caused. Naruto smiled at her thoughtfulness, but waved her off regardless. He had the tools necessary to fulfil tasks like this, after all.

"Nah I'm good, I've got all the help I need..." He retorted, placing his hand in a crossed seal. A few clones popped into existence immediately after, while Karin nodded in understanding before leaving. Naruto looked at his clones before nodding and walking forward.

"Right, let's get to work guys."

* * *

><p>It had taken about half an hour for Naruto to clean his apartment, and it was now about 7:30pm. He was on his way to Ichiraku Ramen for a little plan that he'd had in mind for a little while now, but couldn't think of how to fulfil. Walking through the curtains of the stand, Naruto saw the people he was looking for.<p>

Ayame spotted Naruto and immediately smiled warmly. "Naruto! How have you been, you want the regular?" Ayame said cheerily. Naruto smiled back at her, though she could see how looked a little nervous for reasons she didn't understand. Rather than sitting down, he somewhat leaned over the counter.

"I've been doing pretty well actually, things are going pretty smoothly... and actually, I don't want anything to eat..." Naruto started, and the look of confusion of Ayame's face was probably priceless. "...well, not exactly. I have a favour to ask." He continued vaguely. Ayame still looked confused, as Naruto leaned over the counter and whispered something in her ear.

Ayame's confusion turned quickly to surprise, and then just as quickly turned to a very happy expression. "Oh that's a great idea! I'd love to help!" She exclaimed, as Teuchi just looked at her weirdly.

Naruto smiled gratefully from the statement, before clapping his hands together. "Thanks Ayame, I knew I could count on you..." He started, before his expression turned more serious. "...now here's what we're gonna need..." He continued, as Ayame leaned forward excitedly.

* * *

><p>Haku was currently at her home, doing some light reading – as was the norm for her – while sitting around her table. She never quite knew what to do in her off hours, other than hang around with Naruto and the other rookies or train. She should probably get some sort of hobby...<p>

She was actually reading through a book on the **Yuki no Kuni (Land of Snow)** because she was interested in learning more about the **Hy****ō****ton** and – according to records – Shinobi in Yuni no Kuni were apparently capable of manipulating pre-existing ice to somewhat recreate the bloodline. It was interesting to say the least, because it allowed her to take inspiration from their techniques.

"Hmm... apparently most of the techniques they use are snow based, that's something I haven't tried before, maybe I could give that a whirl." Haku muttered to herself as she began flicking through more pages. She always did enjoy reading – unlike Naruto – and it was where she got most of her information. Zabuza always said that a good Shinobi does their research...

_**Knock Knock**_

Haku raised her head from the book casually, raising an eyebrow at the visitor she had. She wasn't used to getting visitors at this time of day, other than when she was needed for something or when Naruto was coming over. _'Its probably Naruto.'_ She thought to herself with a smirk.

She walked over to the door before opening it at a contained pace to reveal the blond she was expecting. What she hadn't been expecting was his unusual attire.

He was wearing a burnt orange shirt that clung to him quite tightly, with a red dragon wrapping around the sides; the head near the collar looking directly forward and the tail near the bottom. Over the top of it, he wore a black vest that was parted at the centre to avoid covering the design on the shirt. He wore basic black trousers and sandals, not finding it necessary to go too in depth. His mid-to-long hair was somewhat smoothed down.

She blinked repeatedly, trying mentally to ascertain the reasoning for this and finding only one answer that made her blush considerably. She found him _very_ handsome in the outfit and she knew he wouldn't wear it for nothing.

"Naruto-kun... what are you doing here... wearing... that?" The girl said nervously. She was all but certain she knew the reason, but it was probably best to check first. The fact that Naruto of all people looked apprehensive was pretty good indication of what was going on.

"Well I was thinking, we never technically had a first date... so... I was wondering if you, maybe..." Naruto said awkwardly while Haku just watched in a mixture of anxiousness, excitement and amazement. She was anxious and excited at the same time about having a proper first date – that Naruto had obviously planned – and she was amazed that he could act so nervous himself.

"Of course! I just.. um... need to get changed." Haku exclaimed loudly, before quieting down down considerably. Naruto just nodded wordlessly, feeling _very_ nervous right now. Honestly Haku looked good on a normal day, so he was pretty sure whatever outfit she had in mind would either make him faint or stare for a good few minutes.

Naruto idly fiddled with his hands for a few moments in her living room while he waited. He found himself very interested with the inane and uninteresting details of her apartment, out of impatience more than anything else.

It wasn't that he was nervous that things would go terribly, since he and Haku got along very well already, so he doubted anything major could go wrong. It was strange, since he wasn't quite sure exactly what he was scared of, but he assumed it was just bad nerves.

"Naruto-kun?" He heard from behind him. Breathing in deeply, he turned around quickly and immediately felt the need to drop his jaw. In front of him was his always gorgeous girlfriend wearing a long white Kimono with icy blue trimmings and a pattern of various flower petals snaking around its face. The bottom of it split midway down the right side, revealing her right leg in all of its smooth grace. The dress hugged her figure almost protectively, and Naruto felt something he wasn't accustomed with: (mostly due to his thoughtfulness) Desire.

"S-So... what do y-you think?" She stuttered out worriedly, unsure if he'd like her outfit. His eyes immediately snapped to her face, where he noticed she was also wearing her hair differently. She had curled it around midway down the sides and near the bottom on the back, giving it a more vibrant appearance. The front was parted unevenly, almost covering her left eye.

In a strange episode of confidence, Naruto walked over to her and grabbed her hand, raising it up to his lips and giving it a tender kiss. "I think my nickname for you was more accurate than I thought... you really are an angel." He stated surely. Haku blushed but did not retract her eyes, which despite the more being the dull colour that is brown, still seemed to shine with life.

"Thank you... you look more handsome than normal yourself. I kinda like your hair being smoother." Haku said lovingly, her eyes narrowed happily with a warm smile adorning her face. She didn't need make-up or anything like that, since her skin was already spotless (to a degree that even the regenerative properties of the Kyūbi couldn't explain) and her lips had a natural bright tinge.

"Thanks... but trust me, I don't have time to smooth it down every day..." Naruto said, clearly exasperated. Haku giggled at the proclamation, making Naruto smile along with her. He held out his curved arm, to which Haku immediately hooked her own arm into. "...let's get going, shall we?" He continued as they made their way.

"Where exactly are we going?" Haku asked, intrigued by what he'd do. Naruto grinned at the question, shaking his head at the question before looking right at her.

"That... would be telling."

* * *

><p>The young couple was currently walking through the forest, with Haku becoming more and more unsure of what exactly was going to happen. She trusted Naruto completely, and was sure that he had more than walking planned, but not knowing what was going on was making her anxious. The fact that they'd been together long enough to be comfortable with the other was the only thing making it bearable.<p>

"We're almost there." Naruto said suddenly, and Haku could see his smile slowly becoming more worried. If she had to guess, he was worried that she may dislike whatever he had planned, but that was unlikely.

After a few brisk moments, the two broke through the treeline into a small clearing that Naruto knew as his usual training spot. Despite the fact he trained there often, he had barely damaged the place (other than a few scratches and holes in trees) making it the perfect location. Haku looked around, seeing various small but intricate crystal structures giving more beauty and detail to the already appealing location.

To the side was a large pool of water, with a crystal angel statue in the centre. While Haku marvelled at Naruto's attention to detail, the boy himself mentally frowned when he remembered just how much effort it took to get that damn angel right.

The girl's eyes trailed around the clearing and small lake, finding the place to be beautiful and mesmerising to the sight. The way the lake was lit by the moonlight only seemed to increase the natural wonder of the place.

She looked around, noticing a basket and a blanket that probably could have fit about three people. She immediately realized what he had planned all this time and smiled wonder, amazed that Naruto had just stumbled upon such a location.

Naruto was watching her carefully, and was very pleased with the emotions running across her visage. She at first seemed shocked, but it quickly settled into amazement and wonder, before she finally turned back to him with a radiant smile.

"This place is wonderful, and these statues and structures you've made... how long have you been planning this?" Haku asked, as she was in complete disbelief over the level of detail that he'd gone into for this date. It was their 'first' date sure, but this... was exceptional.

"A little while, maybe two or three weeks. I'll be honest, it took me a while to decide on what we should do... but that doesn't matter, because that look on your face when you saw it all made it infinitely worth it." Naruto said honestly, his happiness clear on his face.

Haku leaned against his side at the end of the statement, before looking up at him affectionately. Without further ado, he led her over to the blanket and basket before they both promptly sat down.

Honestly Haku probably wasn't clothed for this kind of date, but she hardly took notice. To be fair, she did spent her days in what was essentially a battle-kimono, so she was used to it to some degree.

Naruto slowly began unpacking the basket, revealing a nice range of foods – some more formal than others – before placing them around the blanket as Haku looked intrigued.

"Who made these?" Haku inquired as she looked around the selection. There were things like Egg fried rice, sandwiches, salads, whatever you could imagine. It wasn't the most difficult selection, but obviously she didn't picture Naruto as the cookery type.

"Me and Ayame... though Ayame needed to lecture me through the whole ordeal, I'm not the best cook on my own." Naruto said with a chuckle as he recalled the verbal onslaught from Ayame when he continually got close to ruining something. Haku smirked at the concept of a waitress scolding a Shinobi and Jinchūiki, finding it a little ironic that the village's 'weapon' was being defeated by a civilian.

Naruto patiently waited for Haku to try something and when she did she looked rather impressed. "This is quite good, you don't give yourself enough credit." She stated encouragingly, while Naruto scratched his cheek with a small blush.

The two ate and chatted for a while, about just about anything that came to mind. They talked about Shinobi arts they were training in, plans for the future, – as Shinobi and general people – Naruto asked about anything new she may have discovered about Konoha and whatnot, before the two came close to finishing.

Naruto had an interesting thought that had been bugging him for a while though, and decided to finally air it. "Hey Haku-chan, you mind if I ask you something?" He asked, getting a shake of the head in return. "...did you ever... wish that Zabuza had won on the bridge; that your path hadn't changed?"

The question surprised Haku considerably, she had no idea he thought of such things. It made sense, since if they'd won on the bridge, she'd never had gotten together with the boy.

"No, never." Haku said confidently, making Naruto widen his eyes in surprise. "...even after meeting you in the forest, I never wanted anyone to win. Did I want Zabuza to survive? Of course I did, but I never desired our victory. The only thing I regret is that he couldn't experience life in this wonderful village... and that he... y'know, died."

Naruto quickly realized he'd changed the atmosphere of the date to something a lot more negative, so he stood up an offered his hand to Haku. The girl shot him a curious glance, though her smile was still present.

"You wouldn't happen to know how to dance, would you?" Naruto asked, again surprising Haku.

"I can... can you?" Haku retorted sceptically. She did not have Naruto pegged for a dancer, but apparently Naruto was pulling out all the stops tonight. It was pretty impressive that he could be so open with her and yet hide things like this so well.

"Yep." He answered plainly, clearly amused by her confusion. "...well, I always call fights dances, right? I'm also planning on learning Kenjutsu, so I figured I should do it to improve my footwork and to actually make my dance references make sense." He stated accurately, trying to convey his thought process.

Haku rolled her eyes at his ever-present methodical mindset. "Always the methodical one, aren't we?" She said jokingly, to which Naruto laughed warmly. He looked at her lovingly as he wrapped his arms around her shoulders, while she did the same to his torso.

"We can't all be the perfect one." Naruto retorted affectionately, as the two began to move in a slow rhythm. What Naruto didn't notice was the small frown that formed on Haku's face from the admission.

It had always secretly bothered her when he commented on her being 'perfect', because she was guilty for a large number of things in her life. The first being her record of killing. Naruto didn't know, but she'd killed _far_ more people than he had.

"You know I can all but smell your self loathing, right?" Naruto said suddenly, in a soft tone. Haku bit her lip, but stayed quiet. "...you don't need to hide things from me, if something's bothering you I will always listen." He continued comfortingly. Haku frowned, somehow not noticing the two had never stopped their movements.

"I just wish you wouldn't think of me as some perfect girl... I'm far from perfect." Haku said, conviction clear in her tone. To her surprise, Naruto actually let out a small laugh at the statement, as though he thought she was joking.

She glared at the side of his head from the perceived mocking laugh he just directed at her. He didn't know what she'd done, how could he claim to understand how imperfect she was? There was a reason she didn't talk about her past experiences.

"I don't care what you've done Haku-chan, all I know is what I've seen. You've been around for nearly a year now, and I haven't seen you once do something ruthless, cruel or even mean..." Naruto replied strongly, making Haku frown in disagreement. "...whereas I have ruthlessly killed two men." He continued with less confidence.

_'Two?'_ Haku thought to herself. She knew about the person that had harmed Sakura, but that was explainable, who was the other? "Who was the second, Naruto-kun?" She asked, now actively stopping their movement to look at him. When he avoided her glance, she knew it was troubling him.

"...Kabuto." He muttered lowly, and Haku could clearly discern the shame in his tone. She'd wondered what had happened after she was injured during that fight, but hadn't thought to bring it up. Now it was clear what had happened, Naruto had killed the man in rage.

Haku bit her lip, unsure if what she was thinking was a good idea. She sighed, grabbing Naruto's hand to comfort both him and to ease her nerves. "I had my first kill at the age of seven... he wasn't even a Shinobi." She said sadly. Naruto widened his eyes at the admission, not believing that she was capable of such a thing.

He could see the suffering in her eyes when she brought it up, which made it all the more clear that she was being honest. In some ways he was curious, since he wasn't sure what could make Haku kill someone – anyone at all – rather than spare them.

"See? You don't know how to respond to that... you'll probably try to think of some sort of excuse, some reason that what I did was just, but it wasn't. I had no right to kill that man, nor can I ever atone for it." Haku said, clearly angry and disgusted at herself for the act. Naruto remembered his first kill quite vividly, but that man _had_ deserved it. It was hardly the same, and for that reason Naruto had no retort.

"Tell me what happened." Naruto asked strongly, wanting to know just what she'd done. He wouldn't really care either way, since he knew how she was now, and that's what's important. Haku nodded and breathed in deeply, she honestly hoped she'd never talk about it.

_**Flashback no Jutsu!**_

_It was a cold winters day in Mizu no Kuni, not too far from where Haku and Zabuza had originally met. The two were currently just wandering after the initial meeting while Haku trained to be the tool Zabuza required. _

_Haku was currently alone in a small shack that the two had located to hide out in for a few days while they recuperated from the long trek to get there. She had no idea where Zabuza had gone, but she did know that she was very nervous about being alone in the shack. Since the death of her parents, she had wanted to find someone else to care for her, but now she was always afraid Zabuza would abandon her. _

_Her fears were baseless; completely born of her paranoia. Zabuza wanted a tool, and he was the one who offered to take her. He had absolutely no reason to abandon someone who had not yet been tested, especially someone with an all-but-extinct **Kekkei Genkai**._

_The door swung open carelessly as Zabuza booted it in since he was currently unable to use his hands. Haku wondered what was going on, but quickly noticed that he was dragging someone by their shirt. The person was obviously wounded, and probably gained the wounds from Zabuza himself. _

_She gasped at the sight of the injured man, but when she rose to check on him she found Zabuza's infamous blade in her path. _

"_Leave him, he won't live much longer..." Zabuza said coldly, while Haku fiddled worriedly as the man groaned in pain and just looked at her. "...he won't live much longer, because **you're** going to kill him." He continued, making Haku's eyes widen in shock. The man continued to look at her, now shaking his head in terror._

"_W-what?! N-no! I can't!" Haku stuttered out in worry, not believing that Zabuza would expect her to do such a thing. The man was injured, had no signs of Shinobi training and was clearly terrified of what was happening. "...Zabuza-sama, please don't make me do this!" She pleaded, though Zabuza just shook his head disapprovingly. _

"_I have no use for a faulty tool Haku, either you kill him..." Zabuza started, before moving his blade to her throat. "...or I kill both of you." He continued, his ruthless statement being made all the more real by the fact that his blade was lightly biting into her neck. _

_Haku's breathing elevated quickly as the reality of the situation became apparent: either she would ruthlessly kill this injured man in front of her, or Zabuza would do if for her, before killing her as well. She began to look around the room, very unsure of what she should do. On one hand, this man would die either way, but on another he was completely innocent. _

"_...A-alright." Haku muttered lowly, her voice breaking from the act she was about to perform. An invisible smile formed beneath Zabuza's mask, before he stabbed his sword into the ground and went through his pouch for a weapon. Grabbing the first thing he could find, he pulled out a Senbon needle and threw it to her._

_Haku briefly looked at the needle, somehow knowing that it would become a large part of her life. This was the way she discovered her weapon of choice, through a trail by fire. She walked slowly over to the man, before crouching down at his side while he just looked at her fearfully._

"_P-please... I h-have...a family." The man muttered weakly. Haku began to tear up at the man's pleading, since she was well aware she was creating another like her. Closing her eyes, she stabbed the needle into the man's neck with a loud cry before starting to sob uncontrollably. _

"_I'm sorry... I'm so sorry." She repeated over and over again while Zabuza just looked on and rolled his eyes. He walked over to the girl and placed his hand on her shoulder, which made her turn around and look at him with teary eyes._

"_Go get some fresh air, I'll deal with him." He said strongly, making Haku nod submissively, before walking out of the room. Zabuza then raised his blade into the air..._

_**Flashback no Jutsu! Kai!**_

"...and that was the last that I saw." Haku finished sadly, a few tears running down her face as she recalled the events of that day. Naruto felt her pain, since he could tell how hard that must have been for her. He sometimes wished Zabuza had suffered more for the things he did to her, but that wasn't his place.

"I realize that must have been hard for you, but I don't see how that was your fault..." Naruto said, while Haku looked at him with interest. "...you said yourself that you basically had no choice in the matter, so I'm a little confused here." He continued, as Haku surprisingly scowled at him angrily.

"That's not the point! I killed that man, a man who had a family! I had no right to do that!" She shouted in return, still crying. Naruto shook his head before wrapping his arms around her, while she simply degraded into relentless crying. "...how can I ever forgive myself for that?" She pleaded weakly, making Naruto pull her closer to him while rubbing her back comfortingly.

He didn't really have an answer for her, nor should he. He hadn't been put in that situation, but he knew one thing...

"If you can't forgive yourself for that, then you can't be a Shinobi... its as simple as that." The blond stated knowingly, while Haku stopped and widened her eyes in surprise at the blunt statement. "...we exist as weapons for the village. I know it goes deeper than that, but that's the harsh truth. Plenty of people have been in the same position as you, but you just need to learn to cope with it."

Haku frowned in response. She knew he was right, but how could she just let it go? It had haunted her for years, it wasn't just something you can stop thinking about.

She then noticed Naruto shifting and before she could think about anything, he was directly in front of her, looking right into her eyes with warmth. Had she mentioned that his eyes were always mesmerising?

"You know I'm always here for you, I'm your anchor. If you're feeling bad, I'll do my best to cheer you up... you don't need to keep it all in." He assured her, holding her head to prevent her looking away from him. She looked so uncertain; so vulnerable that he almost wanted to go into hiding with her until she cheered up.

"A-alright... I trust you." Haku muttered, though Naruto could identify the improvement in her attitude contained within her tone. _'Its hardly a date without a little sob story, right?' _Naruto thought to himself sarcastically. In a spark of madness, Naruto slowly lowered his face until it paused just in front of hers, since it was essentially an invitation that she could accept or deny.

Fortunately for him she accepted the invitation, moving her own face forward towards his while they both tilted slightly and closed their eyes. The two met quickly in a passionate kiss, with no tongue at first as they simply enjoyed the feeling of being joined to the other.

Naruto was feeling bold, and without pause parted his lips and lightly stroked her own lips with his tongue to give her a hint. He could almost feel the smirk that formed on her face as her own lips parted, and the two began to heatedly make out. Naruto's hand slowly trailed down her back until he softly gripped her rear, causing her to release a muffled yelp of surprise, though she made no move to stop him.

She did make a move – however – when she felt something poke her. She pulled back with a burning blush and wide eyes as she slowly trailed her eyes down to a noticeable tent in Naruto's trousers. She opened her mouth a few times to speak, but couldn't think of anything to say.

Naruto rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment, a predominant blush present on his own face. "Sorry, I guess I got a little excited." He said meekly, while Haku giggled at him before taking his hand.

"Nothing wrong with that..." Haku started, before leaning close to his ear. "...its a good thing that I can turn you on." She purred seductively, making Naruto gulp audibly. Haku then laughed at his nervousness, before taking them back over to the blanket.

"Come on, let's just enjoy the night." She stated warmly, to which Naruto nodded happily. They sat down on the blanket before just laying there, fingers intertwined. Naruto closed his eyes and smiled contently as he felt his consciousness begin to fade.

The last thing he remembered was a shining red moon.

* * *

><p>Naruto awoke to the sound of thunder, the flash of lightning shining into his closed eyes. He could faintly hear water splattering outside...<p>

Wait, outside?!

His eyes snapped open to reveal that he was in a very dark – but still somewhat visible – room. His breathing turned sharp for a few moments before he calmed himself and closed his eyes. He started actively searching for any presences via sensory, and he could detect a person directly behind him, apparently just watching him because they were definitely awake.

He also detected something worrying... the man (discerned based on the shape of the chakra network) had a strange flow of chakra in one of their eyes, just like Kakashi. _'Whoever is behind me, they have a single __**Sharingan **__eye in their right socket... this could be bad.' _The blond thought to himself. He bit his lip as he realised Haku may have been taken as well, but he couldn't remember anything...

Unable to stop himself, he let out a brief cough. He quickly tried to act as though he was still asleep and the person behind him seemed to buy it, since they made no obvious movement to check on him, restrain him or whatever. He then heard the creak of a door.

"Excuse me sir, but what are we going to do with him?" The newcomer said, seemingly frightened. Naruto furrowed his brows, still facing away from the two people in the room. The person who was in the room to begin with just hummed in response, seemingly in thought.

"I'm not sure. I'm just not sure if he can be trusted after what he did..." The other man said, his age obvious in his tone. Naruto's expression continued to shift, the conversation was confusing him. "...all I know is that he's robbed Konoha of her **Kekkei Genkai**. Tsunade will probably be looking for him. We can't afford to waste his **Kekkei Genkai** either, unfortunately." The man continued, all the while worrying Naruto more and more.

_'What the hell are they talking about?! What did I do?!'_ He raged mentally, receiving no reply from Kurama despite his usual somewhat helpful attitude.

Silence settled into the room for a few moments as the two people ceased their short conversation. Naruto was strongly considering jumping out of his seat and attacking the two, but that would be foolish without knowing their intentions. It strongly seemed that they believed him responsible for something detrimental to Konoha.

"Um... and the girl?" The younger occupant of the room asked suddenly, again seeming quite worried. Naruto grit his teeth in frustration that he couldn't just turn around and ask what they were talking about, but if he did so he ran the risk that they weren't exactly on his side...

"Burn the body, we can't have any evidence to tie him to her death." The elderly man said commandingly, as the other man turned to leave. Naruto inwardly sighed at the annoying events that were taking place, but now wasn't the time for frustration.

The elderly man reached forward and touched Naruto's neck, while he did the best job he could not to tense up. The man then sighed – seemingly in disappointment – before sitting back down in his chair.

"After you brought her back to the village I began to see you as a benefit to Konoha... but then you go and kill her. Its very disappointing... Uzumaki." The man said eerily, and the next thing he knew Naruto was in front of him with a crystal blade in hand, the only thing heralding his attack being the lightning through the window.

Naruto scowled in annoyance and surprise when he realised that – for some reason – he was completely frozen in place. The only thing he had gained was a look at the man, who had the **Sharingan** eye covered in bandaged which went all the way around the top of his head, his black hair sticking up through the space between. He also had on of his arms covered and was wearing a sort of robe. An identifying feature was the 'X' shaped scar on his chin.

Naruto quickly realised why he couldn't move when a **J****u****injutsu (Cursed Seal Formula)** spread across his body in a strange fashion, some straight lines forming on his face and limbs while on his covered chest a few lines and circles formed in random places.

"I... have no... idea... what you're... talking about... but I will... not sit and listen to it!" Naruto said with great difficulty as the Juinjutsu continued to impair his movements. The man in front of him simply shook his head in disappointment before standing up and pulling the crystal blade from his hands.

Or at least he attempted to, as Naruto's necklace flared bright green as a few spikes grew out of the sword in a defensive effort. The man quickly retracted his hand with a few small cuts before smirking and gripping Naruto's arm tightly, forcing him to drop the blade.

"So you possess the Shodaime's necklace too... a pity it was given to such trash." The man said derisively, while Naruto growled at the man once more in a pathetic act of defiance that would ultimately do nothing to solve his situation.

"You say you don't know what I'm talking about? Allow me to indulge you. Earlier today, you – Naruto Uzumaki – killed the last member of the Yuki clan." The man said strongly, causing Naruto to cease all struggling as shock and denial filled his mind. He couldn't remember... all he saw were flashes.

"What...?" Naruto said breathlessly. The man's reaction was to grab Naruto's right arm and raise his hand in front of his face. Naruto could then see a dried red liquid covering his hand and his denial began to degrade into horror. "...n-no, I wouldn't! I w-would never hurt her!" He denied, though the man paid no mind to his statement.

"It isn't a matter of if, you've done it and you can't fix that." The man retorted confidently, as Naruto began to hyperventilate. It couldn't have been possible, he'd promised to never let any harm befall her, how could he be responsible for her death... how would he possibly come back from it?

While he was busy having a mental crisis, the man walked out of the room. A few minutes later, a small team of medic-nin came in and took him away as he continued to breathe unevenly and started clutching his chest where his heart was as he felt as though he was suffocating. At some point he lost consciousness again, and he barely remembered the auburn-haired man smiling satisfactorily at him.

_**TRANSITION!**_

Naruto shot up with a shout of shock, before taking in his surroundings. He was still in the clearing with Haku, the bright sun shinning down on the water and causing it to sparkle, his various crystal structures somewhat falling apart from lack of chakra to keep them together. He began laughing in relief as he realised he must have had some sort of elaborate nightmare.

"Ah, our minds are fickle things aren't they?" He mused to himself as he looked to his side to the still sleeping form of Haku. Not wanting to wake her right that second, he stood up and stretched before going for a brief walk.

As he walked, he couldn't help but think something was wrong. His chakra flow seemed somewhat incorrect... different... it was weird to explain, but that was what it felt like. He passed another small clearing that had a few small animals scurrying around, which instantly brought a smile to his face. It was nice to see nature in all its glory

Eventually he heard a laugh and turned to see... himself. It was him, only with blood red, deranged eyes. He furrowed his brows at the sight, unsure of what to make of it. He walked to the side to see the copy of him doing the exact thing, wearing a sick smile all the while.

"What's going on here?" Naruto muttered to himself barely loud enough to hear it, but somehow the other Naruto still managed to hear it since his smile almost doubled in diameter. Naruto narrowed his eyes further, trying to figure out where the events were heading.

"You should know, this already happened." The other Naruto said cryptically, making Naruto take on a look of confusion.

"What does that even mean?" Naruto asked calmly, not wanting to get into an argument with himself, especially since he didn't know where this 'clone' came from, or why it had blood red eyes and a sick smile.

"Go check on Haku, you'll see." The other Naruto asserted, before distorting and disappearing. Naruto widened his eyes, before taking off in a sprint through the forest while cursing all the way. He eventually arrived in the original clearing to see... nothing was wrong. Haku was now awake, sitting by the water with a contented smile.

Naruto smiled in relief once more as he jogged over to her. She turned her head to see who was approaching, before spotting Naruto and tilting her head with a warm smile and closed eyes to signify that she was pleased to see him. She almost seemed surprised when he enveloped her in a tight hug.

She returned the hug with an amused but confused smile, lightly patting his back as he laughed happily.

"You have no idea how glad I am to see you alright." Naruto exclaimed joyously, as Haku started laughing in mirth. Naruto froze in place when her laugh began to turn deranged and the sky seemed to dim, raindrops falling all around as the atmosphere quickly changed.

"Well you should be glad..." Haku said in a sing-song voice. "...because you won't see me again." She said in a very different tone, one usually belonging to a mad woman. Naruto pulled back to see lifeless eyes, while her chest had a deep hole in it. He looked down to see fresh blood on his hand and fell back in surprise before he realised what was happening.

This wasn't reality... this was the nightmare, only it was what really happened.

* * *

><p>Naruto awoke calmly, now having come to terms with what happened. He sat up emotionlessly and stood to his feet, his expression showing nothing. His eyes were devoid of life and his body language gave an image of hopelessness. He looked down at his hand, still covered in the remnants of dry blood, before beginning to laugh.<p>

It started out as an insipid laugh, showing nothing but dryness, before it started to pick up in volume and intensity. Before Naruto was even aware of what he was doing, he was laughing maniacally and unable to control his body. If anyone had come in at that time, they would have seen him on his hands and knees, laughing like a maniac while tears freely flowed down his face.

They would have seen a broken boy.

**-****End-**

**I'll be honest, I needed to check three other stories for help on that date. I'm not good with outfit design, nor am I good with... well, dates. There was also a discrete hint in here somewhere, – far more discrete than anything I've done in the past – so I'm wondering if you guys can guess what I've done.**

**Anyway... Review, Favourite and/or Follow. **

**LiamMorg. Out.**

**Ja Ne!**

**-Original Technique(s)-**

_**Shōton: Kurisutaru Tsū****ru no Jutsu (Crystal Tool Technique):**_ The user can use the **Shōton** to create a vast array of tools, ranging from swords and shields to axes and halberds. (C-Rank. Offensive. Defensive. Supplementary)


	25. Chilling Curse

**I don't own Naruto... if I did then last chapter probably would have caused world-wide uproar. Oh wait, it did!**

_**The Frozen Roots Arc**_

"_**One must question – at one point or another – why exactly they choose to go on. Are they doing it because they wish to make something of themselves, or so they do not simply cease to exist?"**_

**Chapter 24: Chilling Curse **

**-Last Chapter-**

_Naruto awoke calmly, now having come to terms with what happened. He sat up emotionlessly and stood to his feet, his expression showing nothing. His eyes were devoid of life and his body language gave an image of hopelessness. He looked down at his hand, still covered in the remnants of dry blood, before beginning to laugh._

_It started out as an insipid laugh, showing nothing but dryness, before it started to pick up in volume and intensity. Before Naruto was even aware of what he was doing, he was laughing maniacally and unable to control his body. If anyone had come in at that time, they would have seen him on his hands and knees, laughing like a maniac while tears freely flowed down his face. _

_They would have seen a broken boy. _

**-Start-**

Naruto sat on the end of the bed he found himself awaking in, staring lifelessly at the wall. He now vaguely remembered what he'd done, and he simply couldn't deal with it. Nothing was in his mind other than guilt, loathing and pain. Being without her was hard enough... but now that he knew he not only broke his promise to protect her, but also was the one who killed her... that was simply too much.

He'd briefly contemplated suicide, initially unable to live with himself for what he'd done, but he quickly noticed that his unknown captors/hosts had placed some form of sealing matrix within the room that stifled his ability to correctly utilize chakra, so he was unable to create any tools with which to carry out the deed.

If he was being honest with himself, he had no idea what to do with himself – assuming his captors had any intention of giving him a choice – now that Haku was not only dead, but he was responsible for it. He hadn't even considered going back to open Shinobi duty, because he'd either be arrested or live in fear of killing Karin or Sasuke, or someone else. The memories of the event were still scrambled and mostly illegible, but he got the gist of it.

Suffice to say, it was an impossible situation.

After motionlessly sitting for Kami knew how long, he heard the door open in his hazy mind, barely even acknowledging the action. Rather than expect the boy to turn, the man walked into his line of sight so that Naruto could now see the similar form of the man he attempted to attack after waking up... wherever they were.

The man stood there for a few moments, before narrowing his eyes at Naruto, seeing obvious signs of grief and despair. "Remember now, do we?" The man asked calmly, no signs of emotion or sympathy in his tone. Naruto shot him an empty glance, before returning his sight to the floor and very slowly nodding.

As the man was about to speak again, Naruto's eyes centred on him once more. "Kill me or release me, I don't care either way. It'll have the same result." The blond said, his eyes and tone giving an uncaring atmosphere to the statement. Rather than his usual bright blue eyes, filled with life and general warmth, his eyes were an icy blue, barely showing any emotion other than sadness.

An almost invisible smirk invaded the man's features as he heard Naruto's testament, before it was replaced by an inquisitive frown. "You seem awfully upset for someone who thoughtlessly killed another." The man stated in an off-handed manner, turning away to survey the room while he spoke.

Naturally, Naruto's expression hardened considerably as he turned to attempt to kill the man with his glare alone. The man stood unflinching though, leaning loosely on his cane, which was a sign that he either didn't need it or very sparingly needed it. After a few moments of getting no reaction from the man, Naruto sighed lowly and stood up before laying on his side on the bed, closing his eyes to block out the harsh reality he was subject to.

"Just leave me alone..." Naruto muttered quietly, his tone hoarse and weak, which the man assumed was from crying, given the boy's appearance.

The man shifted closer to Naruto, before idly staring around the room. "Aren't you curious as to why you're here, or who I am?" He asked suddenly, getting little reaction from Naruto other than a small twitch of the shoulder.

After a few moments of silence, Naruto rolled onto his back and began to stare at the ceiling. "I just don't care anymore." He said honestly, with the man frowning in irritation at Naruto's rather difficult attitude. It wasn't exactly irrational for Naruto to act this way, but it wasn't easy to talk to the boy like this.

Silence again invaded the room as the man decided to size up Naruto's demeanour in comparison to what he saw before he informed the boy about Haku's death. He was noticeably more rigid, his body not having the casual arrangement it did prior. He also seemed less jumpy, probably because he didn't care if he died. Overall, he was the definition of lifeless.

"Then I must simply inform you. My name is Danzō Shimura, I control an organisation called Root within Konoha..." Danzō started, as Naruto discretely paid more attention to the man. "...my organisation exists to protect the village and its interests from the shadows, and given your... recent activities... you would be well suited for my goals." He continued, making Naruto let out a dry snort of laughter.

The man raised an eyebrow at Naruto, who scowled at him before closing his eyes. "I wasn't aware murderers were the best protectors." Naruto retorted irritatedly, not liking one bit what this man was implying to him.

Danzō smirked at Naruto's statement, since it was quite amusing to see someone so young have the gall to speak to him like that. It wasn't a common sight, that was for sure. "Not what I meant. You are committed to the village, I know this much for sure, but there is little chance you can get back into regular duties. Therefore, the only logical way for you to continue to serve Konoha is through my organisation." The man stated passionately, while Naruto carelessly shot him a glance before turning away once more.

"What makes you think I care about serving Konoha anymore?" Naruto retorted once more. "...you may not be aware of this but Haku meant more to me than the village, and like you said... I'm responsible for her death." He continued, his cold tone reflecting his views. Danzō merely smiled, confusing Naruto a little.

"Someone who announces proudly that they wish to be Hokage cannot have their alignment changed so easily..." Danzō stated cleverly. Naruto narrowed his eyes dangerously at the man, a little angry that he'd either been doing his research on him, or worse... following him.

He thought back to the training period between the Chūnin exams second stage and the finals, and he remembered feeling people following him around during that time. If he was being critical – which he was – then he would assume these people worked for Danzō.

Naruto snorted at the man, his face scrunched up in an unattractively antagonistic expression. "Since you know so much about me then you should know this, I don't really have much love for ruthless Shinobi." Naruto muttered, losing his patience at this man who seemed to be trying to annoy him, despite the fact he had little left to lose.

Danzō stared at him closely for a few moments while Naruto's expression devolved back into the cold uncaring expression that had been representing the boy when he entered. It was clear he had given up and simply didn't care, but the boy's **Kekkei Genkai** was simply too useful to waste.

"Well you have two choices, help me to protect the Roots that the great village of Konoha sits on, or this room will become your cell. I can't have you wasting your precious abilities through suicide." The man stated efficiently, causing Naruto's expression to slowly turn more and more furious as he grit his teeth and widened his eyes menacingly.

"Everything is about our special powers to you people!" Naruto spat angrily, deeply surprising the man. "...Zabuza only cared about her for her use as a tool! You just see me as a walking, talking crystal dispenser! It's sickening!" By the time he was done, Naruto was breathing heavily through sheer fury.

Danzō – after sufficiently regaining his composure – merely shook his head in disappointment. "You don't seem to understand the world we live in, Uzumaki. In this world, **Kekkei Genkai **are weapons, Jinchūriki are tools, and Shinobi are our soldiers. You must learn to understand this or you will never survive."

Naruto frowned at the condescending tone, but didn't have the energy to argue. "So... if I serve your Root, can I expect to be left alone once my duties are done?" The blond said slowly and uncertainly. It wasn't easy for him to admit, but he did actually like the sound of this role, since he wouldn't need to show his face while still serving the village he loved.

"Of course. You will be one of my soldiers, not a slave. Assuming you do your job correctly and to an adequate level, I have no reason to enforce boundaries on you." Danzō stated encouragingly, glad that his subtle hints were bearing fruit.

Naruto sighed, lowering his head and sitting motionless for a few moments before standing. "I have nothing better to do... I'll accept the offer." He said vacantly, having morphed back into his now-the-norm emotionless visage.

Danzō smiled victoriously, before leading Naruto out of the room. He then turned back while stopping, making Naruto look at him expectingly.

"Oh, and for now on you shall be referred to as... Soramune."

Naruto frowned briefly as he realized the meaning of the name...

...'Empty Chest'.

* * *

><p>As Danzō lead Naruto around the strange facility they were in – which seemed to be underground – Naruto couldn't help but take notice of the people looking at him strangely. He couldn't see their faces, since most of them were wearing masks (despite being within a secret base) but he could tell they were sizing him up. It was only natural, given the fact that he was a thirteen year old boy who looked hopeless.<p>

"Where are we going?"

The sudden question came from the impatient maw of Naruto, who wasn't in a very cooperative mood right now. Danzō shook his head at Naruto's attitude, since he would probably need to train some respect into the boy. It wouldn't be hard, given the fact he was already broken rather than having to _be_ broken, but it was still important to note.

"In Root, you have no name. You have no feelings. You have no past. You have no future. There is only the mission. You will abide by this creed, and as such we must erase any evidence that you are who you were." Danzō stated knowledgeably.

Naruto shook his head at the overly complex explanation, before speaking in response."You could have just said 'we're making you not look like you'." Danzō actually let out a chuckle at the statement, which didn't exactly seem to be something he should do, since it came out a little creepy.

Naruto made no more attempt to initiate any more conversation after that, so the two fell into an uncomfortable silence. They walked through various strange rooms – the strangest being a large, deep 'tube' of various long catwalks that stretched between the various parts of the complex. Naruto was unsure how such a large place could stay hidden, but then again he didn't particularly care.

He wasn't sure why he even relented to accepting Danzō's offer so easily, but on a subconscious level it was likely because he simply had no other reason to exist. What was the point of life without reason? The answer was pretty damn simple in all respects...

There wasn't one.

For that reason, Naruto would do whatever Danzō told him to... because there was nothing else. This way, he could protect Karin and the village without putting them at risk... whereas he could care less about these nameless Root agents. If they followed the creed Danzō just uttered, then their deaths would hardly matter.

They arrived in what seemed like an operating room. It became clear that they would go to rather insane lengths to hide the identity of any Root agent they took from the outside. He only hoped they wouldn't go too far, he actually liked his appearance.

A rather unimpressive man with long, brown hair and a thick beard came into the room, which made Naruto question the credibility of this system. He looked at Naruto, seemingly inspecting him for a few moments before huffing, a response Naruto assumed was 'bad'.

"I see the problem here, he 'as too many defining features. The whisker marks definitely need to be covered up... maybe dye his hair, blond isn't a common hair colour, 'less you're a Yamanaka." The man said, before looking the blond over for a few more moments. "...that should be enough to hide his background." He concluded, making Danzō nod.

"Then I'll leave him in your care for now." The bandaged man uttered, before turning and leaving. The man directed Naruto to a seat, to which he accepted easily. After a few moments of waiting, the man came over with a batch of some... creamy substance.

The man obviously saw a little uncertainty in Naruto's eye and gruffed, which didn't seem to be a comforting response but that wasn't exactly important. Naruto could assume he was a man's man, since he was quite well built physically, and he didn't seem to be a very nice person... though that wasn't a problem anymore.

"It's a special reagent that sinks into the skin while covering up things like those whiskers of yers while retaining the skin tone, colour and texture. Takes a lot of effert to get off too, so sweating and harsh conditions won't remove it." He muttered, trying to put Naruto's questions to rest.

Naruto nodded lightly, grateful for the answer. After a few minutes of annoying cheek rubbing and then a few more while they waited for the stuff to sink in, the man handed Naruto a mirror. Seeing no trace of his old whisker marks, Naruto nodded in satisfaction.

"Alrighty, you got any preference for hair colour?" The man asked curiously as he led him over to a cabinet containing various hair dyes. Naruto assumed that – like the cream – these were long-lasting and hard to get out without actively trying to do so.

He investigated the selection slowly and carefully, even though he wasn't sure why he cared so much. After a few moments, his eyes locked with one of the colours and the ghost of a smile graced his features.

"White."

* * *

><p>Naruto was now back in his quarters and looking in a mirror over the sink after getting his appearance tweaked for increased anonymity, and he was actually a little mournful that he could no longer recognise himself. It was exactly the point of tweaking his appearance in the first place, but he couldn't exactly help himself. He sighed before leaning down.<p>

"I deserve far worse for what I did to you Haku-chan... I'll never forgive myself." Naruto muttered to himself, as another tear flowed down his cheek. It wasn't likely to be something that he'd get over any time soon... and to be honest he never wanted to forget it.

_**Nor should you.**_

Naruto's head shot up from the sudden, almost spiritual voice that came from nowhere, his eyes widened and his features showing surprise. The face he saw in the mirror certainly didn't put his mind to ease, as it was staring at him accusingly, as though trying to get out to punish him. That wouldn't have been quite so bad if it wasn't for the exact person the face belonged to...

...it was Haku's.

_**How does it feel? To be drawing breath; to continue to do what you want to while I decay? Are you proud of yourself? **_

"H-Haku-chan... ho-how?" The blond muttered lowly, his logical mind clouded by surprise while his guilt bubbled up to the surface once more. He was all the more surprised when the wall around the mirror began to frost over while the air began to cool down considerably. "...this... this isn't..." He stuttered out as he fell backwards, the frost continuing to spread around the room as the cool air began to turn Arctic.

_**Why don't you join me Naruto-kun? After all... we were in love, right?**_

The accusing face of Haku began to smile with deceptive warmth as the mirror expanded and froze over, until it almost perfectly resembled one of her ice mirrors. To Naruto's surprise and horror, Haku began to climb out of the mirror just like she'd done back on the bridge, stepping out in front of him while he clambered back in panic.

"Haku-chan, I'm sorry! I never meant to hurt you! If I could switch our roles I would, I always wanted you to be safe!" Naruto shouted, now actively crying as she threateningly advanced upon him. He didn't know what was going on, nor did he have time to contemplate it as the cold air became unbearable as she strutted towards him.

_**Just accept it Naruto-kun... we can be together again. This is my forgiveness!**_

She pulled out a few Senbon needles as she finally reached Naruto, who was staring at her with fear in his eyes, tears freely running down his face as he shivered uncontrollably. She then smiled with cruel delight as she pulled her arm back, thrusting it forward towards him as he screwed his eyes shut.

"I'm sorry... I'm sorry..." Naruto repeated over and over again like a mantra, not realizing in the slightest that he'd hallucinated the whole thing. He continued to shake wildly as he cracked open his eyes to see everything as it had been previously, as though nothing had even happened. He clutched his hands strongly to his head, running his fingers violently through his now-snowy hair as he tried to discern what had just happened to the best of his ability.

In another room of the secret base, Danzō was watching through a camera with a small frown.

"It seems he's further gone than I anticipated... this could prove disastrous." The man muttered worriedly. Naruto was a Jinchūriki, and if he completely lost his mind to his grief and became insane, it was entirely possible he could go on a rampage or even release the Kyūbi upon them.

A man came up behind him, cloaked by the shadows and knelt down before him. "Danzō-sama, is it possible that we... made a mistake here?" The man stated worriedly, more than a little unnerved by what Naruto was doing.

"I have no idea what you're talking about. Without our guidance he would have merely killed himself, and the Kyūbi would have been released in full force." Danzō replied passionately, as the man gripped his leg tightly, contemplating whether or not to continue his argument.

"You know that's not what I me-" The man started, before receiving a glare from Danzō, who wasn't prepared to continue this discussion.

"Silence. I will hear no more of this. You would do best to keep your comments to yourself... Fū."

* * *

><p>Naruto was left alone for the next hour while he calmed himself down as much as he could. He was still very shaken from his hallucinated episode, but the fact that his ability to feel anything had been severely stunted by Haku's death helped him get over it and back to his cold, indifferent persona.<p>

_**Knock Knock**_

Naruto calmly turned his head to the door, raising an eyebrow at the intrusion of his privacy. He pursed his lips and shrugged his shoulders when he realized he didn't particularly care if anyone intruded on his privacy, since he had no social life now, or for the foreseeable future.

Walking over to the door, he opened it slowly to see a very pale boy, roughly the same age as him, standing in the doorway and sending him a very false smile. Naruto looked on, distinctly uncaring about this person's presence. After a few moments of silence, Naruto furrowed his brows.

"What?" The snowy-haired boy stated harshly (I'm probably going to confuse myself with this colour change...), making his mystery guest noticeably twitch in his facial expression, the false smile becoming even more strained while he seemed to struggle to keep the overall thing together. After a few moments, the other boy's face turned emotionless – like Naruto's own – before coughing into his hand.

"I see pointless pleasantries are unnecessary with you Soramune..." The other boy started. For a few moments, Naruto contemplated that his visitor was either lost or insane, before remembering that Danzō had given him a new identity to reflect his new life. "...I'm Sai, and I've come to take you to Danzō-sama." The boy said professionally, making Naruto nod before directing Sai to move with a hand gesture.

The two began to walk through the corridors, with far fewer people looking at Naruto now that his appearance had changed. Apparently the lack of his distinctive features really did draw attention away from him, because they all looked at him like another grunt... which actually sickened him a little.

"What does Danzō want anyway?" Naruto asked impassively, making Sai pause in his strut as several people looked at Naruto like he was crazy. The snowy-haired boy looked around, clearly uncaring to the apparent issue that everyone had suddenly discovered.

"I advise you start calling him Danzō-sama." Sai advised pensively, making Naruto reply with a distinctly negligent shrug. Sai then narrowed his eyes attentively on Naruto, before retracting them and continuing in his stride. Naruto – or Soramune, as he knew him – was not his problem, so if he made mistakes he would bear the blame.

"So are you going to answer me?" The impatience in Naruto's tone was easily audible, and Sai quickly came to understand that he'd ignored Naruto's question due to his incorrect usage of Danzō's name.

"Oh yes... he needs to get you a more fitting outfit, as well as inform you of training schedules, team placements... you know the drill I'm sure." The black-haired boy stated absently, while Naruto nodded along with him. He briefly received a mental flash of his time in Team 7... with _her_... but quickly shook his head and erased the thought.

It was being difficult to get past it. He knew that hallucinations were a common sign of mental stress and general suffering, but he had no way of getting over it quickly, so he had to just ride it out and hope that she didn't appear to him again... any mental barriers and lack of emotion he may have had were completely erased in her presence, whether she was a figment of his imagination or not.

"I don't need his help to train..." Naruto said bitterly, making Sai shoot him another false smile that made Naruto want to rip the smug look right of his face.

"Actually you could benefit greatly from it..." Sai replied warmly. This managed to get Naruto's attention, if not a little sceptical. "...you share a **Fūton **affinity, which are quite rare if I remember correctly." He asserted, making Naruto inaudibly growl. It was almost confirmed that Danzō been watching him now, since his affinities were hardly common knowledge.

While Naruto's mind wandered, the two made their way all across the base towards Danzō's location. Eventually the two arrived at a room that seemed to be specifically designed for training, since it had numerous wooden dummies and targets. In the centre of the room, Danzō was standing patiently, probably for the two of them.

Sai knelt down respectfully as they neared Danzō, while Naruto just stared impassively at the man. "I've brought him Danzō-sama." The black haired boy said, while Naruto discretely shook his head at the boy. If he could help it, he wouldn't be acting like a glorified servant, no matter how long he stayed in service here.

Danzō turned to face them calmly, nodding at Sai and gesturing him to stand. "Thank you Sai, now you are dismissed..." He claimed, as Sai nodded before disappearing through the use of a **Shunshin**. The man then looked over to Naruto for a few moments before smirking. "...it seems they did a good job with your appearance."

Naruto frowned in boredom, pursing his lips in an act of defiance. "Not that it matters very much... it seems pretty common to wear masks in this organisation." Danzō frowned at the comment, but obviously Naruto would take some effort to make a successful investment. It was hardly a problem, as a child who was both a Jinchūriki and the wielder of a rare – or maybe even unique – **Kekkei Genkai** that had not yet reached the peak of his power was a very worthwhile investment. It was almost delicious just how special Naruto was at the point of his birth, being made into the Kyuubi Jinchūriki, being the successor of the Uzumaki clan and the wielder of a powerful bloodline... simply incredible. Very few Shinobi possessed such power within them, and none of them contained the Kyūbi.

"I suppose that _is_ a fair point, but have to account for the fact that you could be captured by Konoha Shinobi. My organisation is not legally allowed, we act in the shadows and have no alibi when captured." Danzō retorted topically, while Naruto just frowned in disapproval. It wasn't exactly boosting his confidence to hear such things.

"Well that's just icing on the Kami damn cake..." Naruto muttered lowly. Danzō rolled his eyes at the statement, since he had pretty good hearing for his age. Nevertheless, Naruto did have a point, in some small way.

"You will simply have to deal with it, Soramune..." Danzō replied casually, making Naruto shrug with disinterest, his lips pressed into a thin line as he vacantly looked around the room. The way Naruto stood radiated tension and unease, despite the uncaring atmosphere surrounding him. It was clear that he was struggling with his hallucinations, or perhaps he was reliving the experience with Haku. It was somewhat open to interpretation. "...now then, you will be wearing this for the foreseeable future."

Naruto looked down to see Danzō holding a small scroll. He briefly considered cracking a joke about wearing a scroll, but found his humorous side to be noticeably absent from his mind. He took the scroll from the man before unsealing its contents, revealing a standard ANBU uniform – somehow in his size – a long, black cloak that seemed to be standard in Root and a mask that depicted some sort of demonic creature. Naruto narrowed his glazed eyes at the mask, finding it morbidly appropriate to be represented by a demon.

"Alright then... is that all?" Naruto asked, his voice grave from persisting thoughts from observing the mask. His posture had shifted again, now representing a very business-like individual, since he was likely trying to hide his emotions beneath his duty.

Danzō shook his head a little, instantly giving Naruto the knowledge he needed. "I need to tell you a few things before I dismiss you. First and foremost, you will be tagging along with Sai's team tomorrow, and if things go well you will be permanently assigned to that squad. Secondly, I would like to personally train you in your **F****ū****ton** affinity, and to oversee your **Sh****ōton **training..."

"May I make a request?" Naruto cut in suddenly, as Danzō was mid sentence. The man nodded casually, signalling Naruto to continue. "...I would like to study Fūinjutsu during my own time, in my quarters." The question surprised Danzō but did not deter him, in fact it was actually a good thing. Fūinjutsu was a difficult and rare art that not enough people attempted to learn, so it was good that Naruto wanted to learn it.

Danzō smiled, with surprising warmth as the question sunk in. He was knowledgeable in Juinjutsu, making him able to relate to Naruto's need. "Of course, I encourage my agents to study the more difficult and useful arts. Now, all Root agents are trained in Kenjutsu to some degree, mostly for self defence, but you may train in it as much as you please."

A small smile raised across Naruto's face – though it was noticeably strained and he seemed to have difficulty allowing it to rest there – as he received confirmation. Despite everything that had happened, Fuinjutsu was his legacy and he'd like to continue studying it if at all possible. Studying it alone was more of a personal preference, the Uzumaki were meant to be sealing masters, it felt wrong to receive outside help from anyone who wasn't an Uzumaki.

"Thank you, Danzō-sama." Naruto said as respectfully as he could, given his circumstances. The man let a smirk play across his face, an appealing expression decorating his features as he felt that Naruto was reachable, given the correct catalyst. A catalyst _was _created for the sole purpose of creating an impossible bond, and Danzō had just found a rather useful one. Naruto obviously took a liking to Fūinjutsu – not entirely surprising, given his background – making him accessible through that field.

"I don't need to be charitable to allow you to further your skills, as one of my agents any skills you earn will go towards the maintenance of the great tree of Konoha." Danzō stated passionately. Naruto had to admit, he kinda liked Danzō's ideals, but the man was probably some sort of extremist in the service of the village. It was a necessary evil, he mused. "...now, I would like to teach you a technique that I'm fond of. It should serve you well." The man stated calmly, his only visible eye almost perpetually shut.

Naruto nodded in acknowledgement, as Danzō began to lead him over to another side of the training room. They neared what appeared to be a reinforced wall, but on closer inspection it was just wood... wood that was putting out strange chakra signals. _'Maybe I should just ignore it... I'm already losing my mind...'_ Naruto thought to himself in melancholy.

"Pay attention because I don't like to repeat myself..." Danzō ordered, getting a nod from Naruto, before he went slowly through a few seals and inhaling a sizeable amount of air. **"...Fūton: Shinkūgyoku (Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere)**!" The man called out loudly, before firing off a few near-invisible projectiles of wind towards the wall, causing them to pierce through it and continue to burrow for a few seconds before coming to a stop. Naruto assumed that anyone without the **Sharingan** would have great difficulty avoiding the technique due to its speed.

To his surprise, the wooden wall actually began to regrow to fix the new holes. Naruto was about to question what was going on, but Danzō merely shook his head and began to walk away. Naruto frowned briefly, before shrugging and resolving himself to learning the technique. The principal of the technique was quite simple, if not a little odd. Most wind techniques didn't require inhalation of pre-existing air, but rather relied on chakra-infused breath, the same principal used for **Katon** users who wanted to keep a stream of fire going for far longer than their lung capacity should allow.

"Hmm... alright, hand seals..." Naruto muttered, going quickly through the three simple seals. "...deep breath..." He took a long breath which caused his chest to noticeably puff up. _'...and release! __**Fūton: Shinkūgyoku!' **_He mentally exclaimed, before releasing a handful of wind spheres, barely fast enough to be considered dangerous and close enough to be considered one big ball.

"Well... this could take while."

* * *

><p><em><strong>'Fūton: Shinkūgyoku!'<strong>_ The snowy-haired boy exclaimed once more, with a dozen or more wind balls shot forward with more speed and previously, and noticeably more spread out. It still didn't compare with the ease Danzō had with the technique, nor did it share the lethality, but it was certainly getting there.

"That'll do for now..." He muttered, now bored of repeating the same technique over and over again. Normal people couldn't hope to consistently use a technique for the level of time he could, so most people didn't actually reach the boredom stage. He looked around, seeing a clock near the entrance. Walking over, he saw it was getting late and decided to go back to his room to rest, seeing no valid reason to stay up.

_**So where're we going?**_

Naruto paused with a serious frown adorning his features, while his brows were furrowed and his jaw clenched. He turned to see Haku smiling at him pleasantly, and instantly turned back around to ignore her. _'She isn't there, it's all in my mind...'_ He told himself, before taking a deep breath and walking out of the room.

_**If I'm in your mind, thinking things isn't going to get rid of me!**_

The annoying fact that she wasn't bound to the laws of reality quickly became apparent to Naruto, since she appeared in front of him, and somehow actually managed to physically block his path. He briefly considered that he just 'thought' she was blocking him, but it wouldn't make a difference either way, since he still wouldn't be able to pass.

Gritting his teeth more tightly, Naruto tried to fathom a way to get her to... stop being there. Despite how easy one might think it would be to ignore something that wasn't there, the fact that she was... _her_ was making him very uncomfortable. Seeing that radiant smile, beautiful face and long, flowing black hair was seriously upsetting his mind... which was actually quite strange, because she was a figment of his imagination.

"Go away." Naruto spat impatiently, trying to push past the hallucination. The fact that this hallucination – unlike the last – seemed to embody her playful and kind side just made this all the more difficult. Seeing her frown sadly as he passed her by was making his already fractured heart break all the more. _'She isn't really here, do not pay any attention and it can't break you any more!'_ Naruto ordered himself, which probably didn't boost his mental stability.

_**Why are you avoiding me?**_

The sadness in her tone make Naruto freeze as he screwed his eyes shut and growled out lowly, feeling the need to comfort her. His will was shattering quickly at the thought of hearing her like that once more, or seeing her cry even after her death by his own hands. It wasn't logical nor was it sane to give in to the desire to comfort a spirit, but Naruto simply couldn't deny that he never wanted to see her hurt, in any way.

"You... you're not... _real_... you're... you aren't really here." Naruto muttered slowly, his tone low and indecisive. He didn't want to answer her, but at the same time he relished at the opportunity to see her smile once more... it was a delicate problem. Hearing her giggle at the words as though he said something ridiculous warmed his cold heart and brought a sincere smile to his face, against all of his logical arguments.

_**What are you talking about? Of course I'm real, don't be stupid.**_

Hearing her amusement continued to warm his cold heart, until he _felt_ her lean into his side. Looking to his side, he could see her at his side, wrapping her arm around his form and looking up at him with a sly smile.

He then saw her cold face; the dead eyes and lack of life that the present in his recollection of her death. It shook him out of his fantasy and before he could blink, the girl at his side was gone without trace. He violently looked around to see... nothing. Not a single person was within the room, no obvious clues as to whether anyone had been there to begin with. It was just quiet... and empty.

Just like him.

* * *

><p>Naruto entered the threshold of his quarters, quickly slamming the door shut and collapsing against its face. He screwed his eyes shut tightly as he clawed at his frosty hair in a vain attempt to wrest control over his fractured mind. There was no collective intelligence, it was more like multiple minds were vying for control of the various pieces left scattered by Haku's absence. He desperately needed a catalyst; something to allow him to fix the irreparable damage done to his psyche... but what was there left to use?! Haku was gone, and without her it just seemed impossible to gain any sort of stability. It most certainly did <strong>NOT<strong> help that he was seeing her everywhere!

"How... how do I get past... this?!" Naruto hissed at himself, desperately searching for an answer. It wasn't wise to go asking anyone else for assistance, since he highly doubted Danzō was interested in having a mentally unstable pawn. He was only continuing to live because he thought he could continue to do some good while he existed, so having Danzō cast him away would lead to nothing. Hell, it would probably lead to him committing suicide.

Breathing heavily and even audibly whimpering, he spent the next few moments simply sitting with his back to the door and his hands intertwined with his hair. Anyone who had known him – before and after he improved his intellect, appearance and more – would probably be shocked and horrified at the sight of Naruto Uzumaki appearing so vulnerable and generally broken, since even in his worst days he never did so.

Finding no answer, Naruto found no alternative to simply ensuring he was always doing something, and if he wasn't he would either find something or sleep his painful memories away. Clambering into his bed slowly, he tried to allow his mind wander. Fortunately – or so he thought – he felt himself embrace the pull of sleep.

_**Flashback no Jutsu! **_

_Naruto's eyes locked with a bright red moon, almost glaring at him in fury. He furrowed his brows at the sight, not remembering seeing the moon in such a state. It was even stranger that he could feel an influence growing inside of him from staring at its face._

_His vision began to redden, almost as though seeing blood around the edges of his vision. He turned slowly away from the face of the moon to look at the girl at his side. He looked at her closely, feeling rage building within him. He didn't feel the regular warmth that he found himself feeling whenever he saw her beautiful face... no, he felt hate. _

_He hated how weak she could make him; how vulnerable he was whenever she was endangered; how his existence was so tied to her own. It sickened him that she had managed to make him so dependant. He deserved to be strong and unyielding, not to be tied down to his emotions by her mere existence._

_Looking down at his hand, he saw his fingernails had extended into long, thick claws while a wispy red aura permeated his being. He cared little where it came from, it felt good... he felt himself embrace his hatred. It was such a comforting feeling... _

_Looking at her once more – completely oblivious to his blood red, slitted eyes – he raised his hand, straightening it out as though ready to thrust it into something, before grinning devilishly. He saw her form begin to move a little as her brows furrowed in what he perceived as confusion. _

"_Naruto-kun, do you feel something... wrong?" The girl asked, making Naruto's grin deepen. He felt good, and it was time to settle things. Retracting his arm away from her and grazing a clawed fingernail on his other hand over her cheek – which caused her to shiver with a small smile – he placed his head near her ear. _

"_Just relax Haku-chan, it'll all be over soon..." _

_**Flashback no Jutsu! Kai!**_

Naruto awoke with a frown. It was impossible to make him more depressed, so all the dream did was to satiate his curiosity about just what happened. It also gave him a much clearer picture regarding just how the deed was performed and what caused it. He growled lowly as he realized what the reason was for Kurama's surprising level of silence and solitude since the whole ordeal occurred...

...he was the cause.

He didn't have a full picture, the memory having cut out before he had a chance to fully explore exactly what had happened, but he could accurately guess how it wound end. He didn't need to see the end to understand what happened, as it would probably just upset him.

He couldn't help but feel like something was wrong... he couldn't place it, but he felt as though the way his memories were presenting themselves was abnormal. One didn't usually recall important events in their sleep, but then again he wasn't a psychologist. He was smart, but he didn't exactly know everything about every topic.

Deciding to put Kurama's silence to rest, he closed his eyes once more and allowed his mind to wander to the place he sought.

* * *

><p>Entering the mindscape, Naruto was surprised to see himself in the sewer-like tunnels that he'd been forced to wade through the first time he entered the space. Perhaps Kurama had some choice regarding where he arrived, it may have been Naruto's mind but this section was reserved for Kurama's consciousness alone.<p>

Looking down at the water, Naruto could tell it was higher than before, and that it reflected his true appearance; his blond hair and whiskers were proudly on display. He shrugged at the occurrence, since he didn't pay too much attention to the water level nor the way he was displayed in this place.

He let out a sigh as he began walking down corridors aimlessly. He was sure the passage of time in here was different to the real world, as he could spend a while conversing with Kurama before returning and not much time would have passed. Still, it didn't mean he liked to just wander aimlessly around these halls.

After a while his pace quickened as he began actively running down the halls, his curiosity and anger bubbling to the surface in regards to just why Kurama had influenced him to do what he'd done. The explanation would make no difference; Haku would still be dead, but he really wanted to know the motivations the fox had.

Finally arriving in Kurama's chambers, Naruto was both shocked and surprised to see that the usual barred gates that contained the fox were now thick, metal doors. He could vaguely hear scratching and banging coming from behind them, but other than that there was no obvious trace of the fox anywhere.

"What caused this?" Naruto muttered in confusion. His seal was complex, he knew that much after properly studying it using his – albeit small – knowledge of Fūinjutsu. Nobody could just look at his seal and alter it without knowing the exact design and functions it came with. Who was capable of messing with one as complex the one him, since it was designed exclusively by the Yondaime Hokage?

He knew that tampering would be the only cause of physical changes, since mere thoughts would definitely not transform the appearance of this place so heavily. He actually let out a chuckle at the concept of this place transforming into a forest at the snap of his fingers, but quickly shook off his amusement.

Growling in frustration and a lack of clear answers to his problem, Naruto faded from the mindscape, never knowing just why Kurama was so furious.

* * *

><p>As his mind drifted back to the corporeal world, he could tell it had been a few minutes, maybe 20 or more, since he had entered his mindscape. It wasn't an exact science, but after a while of having no actual tools to tell the time a person could somewhat predict it.<p>

Standing up from his bed, Naruto got dressed quickly, completely uncaring about bathing right now... he had better things to do. He walked towards his door and opened it to see a fist nearly hit him in the face. Seeing the black haired boy that had come to his quarters the day before, he tilted his head to the side in annoyance as he crossed his arms and placed his weight on one leg while the other idly tapped the ground.

"Ah... you're awake... good..." Sai said with a little confusion, though Naruto wasn't interesting in anyone else's mental condition since his own was taking up so much of his time. "...Danzō-sama informed me that you are in my squad, so I've come to tell you we are meeting in the main chamber in twenty minutes." He continued, while Naruto blinked a few times before nodding when he remembered Danzō had mentioned that.

"Sure... I'll be ready in a few minutes." Naruto muttered, obviously not giving much enthusiasm. Sai then nodded and walked away while Naruto closed the door with a sigh.

"Another day, another pain in my ass."

**-****End-**

**Yes, it's too angsty. Yes, I should fix it. No, I'm not planning on doing so, as I'm insanely swamped already. Next chapter reduces the angst significantly, so don't lose hope yet.**

**Anyway... Review, Favourite and/or Follow. **

**LiamMorg. Out.**

**Ja Ne!**


	26. Icy Endeavours

**I don't own Naruto... If I did, the main villains wouldn't be Uzumaki, Uchiha, Uchiha. Add another Uchiha if you count Itachi.**

_**The Frozen Roots Arc**_

_**Quote of the chapter/day: "Emotions can be troublesome and get in the way of our success... but they can also embolden us; inspire us to do great things."**_

**Chapter 25: Icy Endeavours**

**-Last Chapter-**

"_Ah... you're awake... good..." Sai said with a little confusion, though Naruto wasn't interesting in anyone else's mental condition since his own was taking up so much of his time. "...Danzō-sama informed me that you are in my squad, so I've come to tell you we are meeting in the main chamber in twenty minutes." He continued, while Naruto blinked a few times before nodding when he remembered Danzō had mentioned that._

"_Sure... I'll be ready in a few minutes." Naruto muttered, obviously not giving much enthusiasm. Sai then nodded and walked away while Naruto closed the door with a sigh._

"_Another day, another pain in my ass."_

**-Start-**

_'These guys couldn't be more boring if they tried...'_

This was the general musing of one Naruto Uzumaki (or Soramune, as he was currently known), while listening to the leader of Sai's team. It was clear to him that Danzō was being pretty accurate when he said Root agents didn't have identities, because these were the most monotonous, boring and generally emotionless individuals he ever had the misfortune of listening to. He was considering bolting into a life of solitude just to stop hearing this crap.

"So basically we're assassinating an enemy of Konoha." Naruto summarized with boredom dripping from his tone. The leader of the group – a man by the codename Renta – looked at him for a few seconds and nodded mechanically, making Naruto roll his eyes behind his mask. It was probably a good thing the mask's eye-holes were too small to see into, since he was rolling his eyes a lot recently.

It was clear he wouldn't have any riveting conversations while in Root, but that didn't mean he couldn't do some good while he was there. Sure, the general work ethic of Root seemed to be 'kill first, ask questions later' but somebody needed to do it, and why not him? It would be keeping the village safe while he resigned himself to boredom and casual self loathing.

"Alright, let's get moving..." Renta stated, as their four-man squad moved into action. The squad consisted of Naruto, Sai, Renta and a woman who's name was unknown to Naruto, because the organisation clearly didn't care for introductions nor pleasantries, and the blond-turned-snowy haired boy certainly wasn't interested in making friends with anyone here. If it happened, great. If it didn't, he could live with it.

* * *

><p>The group moved at a brisk pace through the woods, and Naruto assumed they were about a mile or two away from Konoha. A small smirk crossed his lips in amusement that Danzō had managed to hide his technically illegal organisation's main headquarters so close to the village, but alas it was irrelevant. Via sensory, he could vaguely pick up some convoys and travellers not too far away, so he assumed they were a little while off the main road, hidden in the brush.<p>

The entrance to the Root headquarters itself was a small hatch in some bushes, with a ladder leading down into the base. It was quite clever really, but Naruto had no idea how they found their way back without getting lost. He'd probably figure out eventually, but for now it was a small mystery in his otherwise strange life.

At some point in their strangely long journey, Sai had decided to drop back near Naruto while the other two members ran slightly ahead, giving them a 'box' formation. Sai would occasionally appear to be attempting to start a conversation, but Naruto was intentionally making it difficult for the boy. The black haired, pale-skinned agent was clearly not a big socialite, so any conversation they had would ultimately be a waste of time.

"So... Soramune, how did you end up in Root? Usually members are recruited at a young age, it's rare for anyone older than ten to be recruited." Sai questioned a little while later, as the forest began to narrow. Naruto could pick up some small grains of sand, so he assumed they were getting near to the desert around Suna. He eventually sighed and turned to Sai, jumping between branches casually without even looking.

"That's not exactly your business, but let's just say there were some... traumatic experiences that led me here." The Uzumaki answered, taking pause as he recalled the events. He slightly shook his head to keep himself focused, before hearing a hum of acknowledgement from Sai.

What the black-haired social idiot didn't realize was that Naruto was being quiet for a reason. There were some circumstances bugging the blue eyed boy, some things merely didn't add up. Danzō had managed to capture Naruto awfully quickly after he 'killed' Haku, the Kyūbi had evidently been contained, which meant that Danzō was aware of the circumstances of the girl's death... the man had agents following him beforehand, which could explain that, but it also meant that he was already scoping Naruto out.

Then there was the fact that Danzō had attempted to convince him that he'd killed Haku, not the Kyūbi or while under its influence, but him and him alone. He was playing some strange mind games and none of them were quite adding up. He'd have to try and confront the man after he returned, but he'd also need to play it safe. Danzō was powerful; despite his age his chakra system was strong and healthy, he held a hidden**Sharingan** eye... and that arm of his... it contained worrying chakra signals. It was muffled by some sort of device, but whatever was hidden wasn't meant to be there.

By the time he had stopped his silent musings, the group had stopped at the edge of Suna's surrounding desert. Naruto let out a small nasal grunt, irritated that he'd not paid any attention to the world around him. He noticed that the group was looking at him and raised an eyebrow from behind his mask, clearly not on board with whatever they were thinking.

"Our target is reported to be hiding somewhere in the desert. We know a rough location, but not the exact details. I've been informed you are a sensor..." Renta said, pointing at Naruto. "...so you'll be our eyes." Naruto nodded nonchalantly, not having a problem with the decision. From what he could tell, sensory had no chakra consumption, nor did it have any downsides to the usage... yet.

When they started moving forward, everyone noticed that the nameless female member wasn't moving. Renta seemed confused... it wasn't easy to tell that he was confused, but the small tilt of his head gave enough away.

"I was thinking..." The woman started, gaining the attention of the group. "...should we give Soramune the honours of killing the target? A test, so to speak." She posed, making Naruto quietly suck through his teeth in irritation. He wasn't completely adverse to killing, but he still wasn't fond of it.

"Good idea, we need to see if he's capable." Renta stated, as they took off, leaving Naruto behind for a moment. He sighed loudly, being drowned out by the desert wind, before taking off after them.

* * *

><p>The location of the 'target' was not as simple as Renta made it out to be. The target area was surprisingly large, and the constant desert winds and scorching heat made it quite difficult to gain enough focus to passively use sensory techniques. It would be infinitely more efficient if he could stop to touch the ground, but that would take longer.<p>

As they stumbled over yet another identical looking sand dune, Naruto picked up a faint signature. He almost felt like shouting out 'Finally!', but evidently decided against it since the others wouldn't appreciate it. Letting out a loud whistle, the group came to a halt. Renta motioned for him to talk while Sai stood mechanically still, even through the winds. The woman seemed to be idly curling her hair, a tell-tale sign of some form of free will and emotion. Maybe she wasn't as stunted as the other members he'd encountered?

"I've detected a signature not too far in that direction..." Naruto said, pointing in a rather indistinct direction. The woman crossed her arms, raising one to scratch her chin from under her mask as she thought it out. The leader merely shrugged, not having a reason to ignore the statement.

"Then let's go." Sai said with a strange cheer that made Naruto pause. He pictured himself smacking Sai over the side of the head, and that was enough for then. As they began trudging forward, he saw what appeared to be a mirage of a black haired girl, before she disintegrated in the desert storm. Naruto grunted to himself, being fully aware of who the girl was as he continued to trek through the sands.

* * *

><p><em>'Note to self: Never go to Suna unless you bring a lot of bloody water...'<em> Naruto thought to himself with a growl as they neared the chakra signature that he'd picked up. _'…and I swear to Kami, if this isn't the person we're looking for I'm going to snap Sai's neck!' _He mentally raged, already having had enough of Sai's infuriating social retardation. The guy didn't understand the slightest trace of sarcasm or any sort of figure of speech... he was infuriating!

The group neared a cave in silence – as they'd spent most of the trip – while Naruto nodded, this was certainly the correct place. The leader paused them at the entrance, making sure that none of them could be seen from within. By the time they'd finally gotten there, it had started to cool – fortunately for Naruto's mental health – so it was a nice, cool temperature at the moment. There was a faint glow coming from within the cave, and Naruto could see there were a few twists before you actually got into the main body of the cave, so that gave him time to creep along.

"What does the target look like? I have no idea if I've even located the right person." Naruto muttered irritably. The leader shook his head, letting out a snort that showed – despite the lack of social skills and emotion – he would still be pissed if that was the case.

"Male, mid thirties, but appearance would suggest younger than that. Shaggy brown hair; likely not washed for a while. Purple eyes. Reasonable build, tall. He isn't very dangerous, having a mostly financial threat." Renta said methodically, and Naruto had to turn to see if he was checking a list. He let out a snide laugh when he saw it was all memory, before he felt someone prodding his shoulder.

He turned to see the female member of the group holding up a Tantō with a strap and holster for it. He considered turning the weapon down, since his fight with Kabuto proved that he should probably not use weapons he wasn't trained with, but hopefully things would go smoothly enough for that to not be a problem.

"Thanks." Naruto said, and he was sure he could hear the girl smile... which was strange. Maybe not all agents were exactly emotionless. "...I never did get your name." He stated, trying not to fall into his recently pre-readied demeanor of moody; trying to make himself sound interested for her sake.

"Sāra." She answered kindly, before Renta grunted impatiently. Naruto narrowed his eyes at the man from behind his mask, not sure what the problem was, but shrugged and decided that he should get to work. It was apparent that he'd be doing all the work today, but that was alright.

He had an interesting idea, bringing a devious smile to his face as he formed the clone seal.

* * *

><p>Wakei Tsuru was an honest man, many would call him a businessman. He dealt with financial details, giving loans and the like to villages, individuals or even large nations that would need to be paid back at a later date, with interest. It wasn't his fault that his last deal had ended up backfiring severely, leading to him being hunted by strange masked individuals.<p>

Sure, he'd chosen sides in a major Shinobi affair; backing Suna in their attempted invasion of Konoha, but all evidence led him to believe that they would be successful! With the amount of money he'd 'donated' to their cause and the interest rate they'd decided upon, it would have made him rich! Then Suna had to go and mess it all up. They lost the 'war' – if you could call it that – with Konoha, even with the help of Otogakure.

Ultimately, he thought this wouldn't a problem other than the extreme haemorrhage of money because the only documentation of the transaction was made with the Kazekage. That apparently wasn't the case, because he was now the prime assassination target for a strange organisation that was apparently called Root, or something like that. It was all one big mess which led to him being trapped in a cave in the desert during a sandstorm.

He shot up like a bullet when he heard a coughing sound coming from the entrance and quickly moved to douse the fire he'd set up before hiding, but he had no time to do so before a person wearing a brown cloak stumbled into the cave, coughing profusely as they seemed to be struggling with the sandy conditions, before skidding down the wall into a sitting position. Against his better judgement, he ran over to the individual to see if he/she was alright.

"Hey uh... you OK?" The brunette asked nervously, subconsciously fearing that he'd chosen poorly. The individual he was speaking with coughed for a few more moments before leaning upwards to look at the man. Purple eyes connected with green ones, as the individual revealed themselves as a male who looked like he was in his late teens, though maybe a bit short for his age.

The person pulled down his hood and grunted as he pulled himself into a standing position, spitting out some saliva to get the sand out of his lungs and revealing his full face to the man. He had straight and short silver hair, reaching down to just above his top of his cloak. The sides were a little shorter, though still covering his ears. The front was side-swept, falling just above his eyes and mostly covering his brows. He had tanned skin, a small scar running over the right side of his lip to the bottom of his lip in the middle.

"Thank you, I'm... better now." The boy spoke hoarsely, before standing straight. When standing at his full height, he was actually reasonably tall, his green eyes seemingly shinning. He then began to look at Wakei's features closely with an inquisitive gaze. He hummed in what seemed like acknowledgement of something, confusing the man deeply.

"Uh... what's the matter?" Wakei asked, trying to hide his anxiousness. The boy in question blinked a few times, before running a hand through his hair with an embarrassed smile, then proceeded to shake his head to the side to sweep his fringe in the correct direction. It could be assumed that the action was a force of habit, since he seemed quite happy to do so.

A small rocky sound could be heard below them as they both looked down to see a noticeable crack in the ground, which they had varying reactions to. Wakei seemed concerned, while the boy in question seemed to not care much, though he did briefly give it a glare, as though annoyed by its presence.

"I'm sure that's nothing... probably just due to the lack of moisture in here." The boy said, referring to the crack in the ground. "...so, you hiding from the storm too? You look like you've been out here a while." He said, walking over to a small rock before sitting down casually. Wakei gave him a quick glance, seeing that the boy seemed pretty nonchalant in regards to meeting a strange man in a cave.

"You could say that, I've just been over in Suna... was making my way back to the Hi no Kuni (Land of Fire), storm caught me off guard." Wakei lied convincingly, to which the boy hummed and nodded. "...what brings you out here kid?" He asked, his nervousness forgotten as curiosity took precedence.

The boy let out a small grunt as he thought it out, occasionally letting out another cough to coincide with his prior trek through the storm. There was a seemingly unnecessary silence within the cave as the boy was apparently thinking about it with much more difficulty than was required.

"I just... kinda wander, y'know?" The boy replied slowly while narrowing his eyes and lowering his brows, making Wakei – who was not sat beside him – lean forward a little in curiosity. "...it's been a while since I've just settled somewhere, so I just wander from place to place, doing whatever I need to do."

The statement both confused and interested Wakei. The boy looked quite fit for his age, which definitely would coincide with his story, but why would someone so young be wandering so aimlessly in the first place? Perhaps the boy was an orphan, that would have been the first thought... but what could have led him to this lifestyle? He was a curious man and now he wanted to know.

"Y'know, I never did catch your name kid. I'm Wakei." The man said invitingly, making the boy smile at him with genuine appreciation. He took the man's hand and shook it for a moment... but then tightened his grip considerably as the smile dropped off his face to reveal a calculatingly stoic and expressionless visage. "...w-what are you-"

His sentence was cut off when he heard a loud earthen noise come from behind him; the sound of breaking rock. The noise was quickly followed by what sounded like two feet landing on the ground simultaneously, before he realized with painful clarity that there was a blade sticking through his chest, his blood spurting from the around the shiny silver blade and landing around the room, some on the face of the boy holding his hand. He wrapped his hands fleetingly around the small blade, knowing his life was over regardless of his actions. The blade cut into his palms, but he was far too shocked and close to death to notice.

The boy in front of him frowned, releasing his grip of Wakei's hand. The last thing the man saw before his eyes closed and the darkness claimed him was almost impossible to explain in his clouded and panicked mind. Several tiny plates seemed to rotate and shift on the boy's body; writhing segments shifting and shaping into what seemed like a completely different person, noticeably younger in appearance, with white hair and blue eyes, no other distinguishing features on his face. The boy parted his lips as the man's eyes slowly closed, preparing to give a last answer to the man.

"My name... is Soramune." The boy answered quietly, something of a mark of honour to respect the man he killed, even passingly. He looked up at his clone and briskly nodded in approval of the action. The clone nodded back before tossing the Tantō to the original and dispelling, allowing the body of Wakei to fall to the ground.

Naruto let out a lengthy sigh, closing his eyes and leaning his elbow on his knee and doing the same with his head and his palm. He briefly considered that he'd killed a perfectly innocent individual, but that wasn't his place to judge... it was the ugly truth to being a Shinobi that Root seemed to capitalize on.

He let a smile cross a face when he removed the more negative thoughts from his mind and realized just how successful his **Shōton****: Henge (Crystal Release: Transformation)** was in fooling the man. He'd blundered a little in the execution; forgetting to create a backstory or name for his persona, but everything had ended up alright. It was pretty efficient all things considered, quickly changing him into his desired image without audible cues or puffs of smoke.

_**Now wasn't that excessive for a non-combatant?**_

Naruto's immediate reaction was to let out a lengthy groan and turn to the side to see Haku leaning against a wall idly. He gentle rubbed the bridge of his nose with his thumb and pointer fingers; attempting to fight off an irritated migraine. He turned back to her and decided to indulge his delusion.

"Perhaps, but excessive is better than inefficient..." Naruto retorted, causing the delusional image of Haku to hum in thought. "...now, when are you planning on leaving me alone?" He continued, making the image laugh mockingly while his face slowly shifted further into irritation.

_**I'm a figment of your imagination, you tell me.**_

"You're accepting that you're not real this time at least." He muttered lowly, which was ultimately pointless since she knew his every thought. Having your own mind playing tricks on you was very confusing, since conversing with any figment you dreamt up would be the same as talking to a small part of your psyche.

_**You know what they say, love comes from the heart. Your mind is what personifies these emotions, so every time you see me a different part of your brain is responsible for my creation.**_

"So what part was responsible this time, The snide part?" The boy questioned humourlessly, making the image of Haku shrug and push herself off the wall. She took a few steps forward before turning to face him, a frown adorning her face. His eye twitched in response to the hard gaze she began shooting him, despite his attempts to block her out.

_**I know you want me to leave. Like I said, I'm a figment of your imagination. To rid yourself of me, you must simply get past it.**_

"Yeah, well... easier said than done..." Naruto retorted, clearly anxious for this conversation to end. Haku's stern stare slowly shifted into a lopsided smile as she slowly walked towards him. Naruto narrowed his eyes, leaning forward slightly while attempting to think about what she was about to do. When she was quite close to him, she leaned down very close to his face as her smile turned warm and captivating, parting her lips to speak.

_**Then we'll be seeing a lot of each other.**_

She instantly vanished when the sentence was done, which despite Naruto's knowledge that she wasn't real still made him jump considerably. He let out a surprised shiver as he quickly jumped to his feet, pacing the room to calm his nerves before continuing his brisk pace out the cave entrance. He stopped as he neared the exit to the chamber he was in, looking back at his victim.

He blinked numerous times as he pursed his lips in deep thought, running a hand over his chin as he tried to think of an answer to his mental query.

"What was I meant to do with you again?"

* * *

><p>As it turned out, the group had taken a little too long to find Wakei and was now forced to spend the night within the cave they found him in. This unfortunately also meant that they had to dispose of the body and take only the head, on Sāra's claim, which somewhat disgusted Naruto. Strangely enough, Renta had allowed them to remove their masks for the night, only putting them back on when it was their turn to take watch.<p>

Due to this, Naruto now had time and the attention span to survey the appearances of his teammates. Sai was Sai and Naruto had seen him before, so there was no deduction to be done there, but the other two were rather interesting people and he was surprised he hadn't noticed these features beforehand.

Renta was a large man, easily around the same height as Jiraiya, if a little less bulky. He was tanned, though his face was a little pale – likely due to the mask he wore – and was quite well built. He had an ANBU tattoo on his right shoulder, meaning that he had either been part of ANBU prior to joining Root or that both organisations were once linked. He had short auburn hair, smoothed back over his head to avoid it impairing his vision and dark red eyes that seemed dulled from experience. He had a burn mark around his left eye, probably from some form of **Katon **technique of low intensity. He had a stubby nose and cracked lips. Overall he was a living embodiment of a battle-worn man.

Sāra was a different case and if Naruto had to be honest she was quite beautiful. It made him frown whenever he thought such things, believing that he couldn't possibly betray Haku's memory more than he currently was, but honesty was important. Her figure wasn't perfect, nor was it off-putting. She seemed well balanced, which made her seem more legitimate. She had a fair complexion, again a little paler on the face.

She had brown hair, long all around and the sides fell onto and in front of her shoulders, stopping above her chest. The front fell over her eyes without her mask, but with it she could see just fine. She could be seen brushing it away every couple of seconds, which was admittedly making Naruto chuckle. The back was long and flowed as though alive. Her eyes were strange; she had heterochromia, one of her eyes was blue and the other was green. It was a strange sight, but was strangely eye catching. Naruto was half expecting to see one change colour suddenly, but that was silly.

Generally, he had a strange group. One was unnecessarily pale, another tanned and the last mild. It was as though he was in a story and the writer decided to give out a weird stereotype where every member had to be very different in both personality and appearance. The thought made him laugh lowly out of the sheer hilarity of such thoughts. That was impossible, surely. (Don't call me Shirley.)

The group had been impressed with his execution of the assassination, but ultimately it wasn't a very difficult one to lead off with. The man was no Shinobi, and even a Shinobi wouldn't have detected him unless they were a sensor. There were few weaknesses in the **Shōton: ****Henge**, the only noteworthy one being that it didn't hide his chakra signal from people he'd met or people he was trying to fool into thinking he was a civilian.

He was starting to get the impression that Sai knew more than he led on though, since he could see a small glare from his peripheral vision when he used the transformation near the cave entrance. It was as though Sai was aware of the **Sh****ō****ton** and who it belonged to... in which case he'd need to be careful.

In his musings, he didn't really notice Sai come in from his watch, with Renta taking his place. He also didn't notice Sāra coming over to him until she was already there. She sat next to him, looking rather bored and yet inquisitive all at once. It seemed as though she was pondering something difficult, so he made no attempt to initiate conversation while she continued to do so.

"You've lost someone..." Sāra said suddenly, making Naruto's eyes widen considerably as he turned to her. Her expression shifted to a victorious smirk as she saw his own look. "...I can see it in your eyes, I've always been good at it. People used to joke that my eyes were different colours because they could see different things." She continued, while Naruto fell silent. He didn't want to discuss his personal problems with anyone, let alone someone who was from Root; a place he was sure had some sort of system for emotional wiping.

Naruto's silence seemed to fill the cavern, with everything seeming uncomfortable. Even the placement of his hands became awkward, as though they weren't right no matter where he put them. Sai was naturally oblivious to the issue, but Sāra was expectantly waiting for Naruto to form the smallest figment of a reply.

As he tried to search for an escape to the question posed, he wondered what was going on in Konoha regarding his... disappearance.

* * *

><p>"<strong>WHAT DO YOU MEAN THEY WON'T REVERSE SUMMON HIM!?"<strong>

The booming voice of one Tsunade Senju filled the entire village, but most of them had no idea what she was talking about. Since Naruto had disappeared about 3 days ago she'd been... _very_ on edge about the whole thing. For starters, it reflected poorly on her to lose the Jinchūriki of the Kyūbi within so small a period after being appointed Hokage. People like Danzō were already breathing down her neck about it... but that damn war hawk always knew something.

It also didn't help that Naruto was the one who helped convince her to take up the Hokage position in the first place, since she felt like she owed the boy for his help in the matter. To lose track of him so quickly... it was unsettling. It was entirely possible that Orochimaru or the Akatsuki were behind this, and it was driving her nuts that he vanished without a trace! The only lead she had was Haku, and that was... a delicate matter.

It didn't help that Naruto's classmates, friends and acquaintances were constantly coming to her for updates, which she didn't have. Karin was _easily_ the worst of the bunch. Tsunade could understand of course, she had no relatives until Naruto found her... and to lose him out of nowhere and face the fearsome potential that she may be the last Uzumaki was very unsettling. Being the last living Senju, Tsunade was well aware of the issue.

She finally received a good lead in the form of the toads. They – like most of the large summoning species – were capable of using a special summoning technique to allow just about any summoner to be instantly transported to Mount Myōboku, where they could then take him back to Konoha, problem solved! Unfortunately, the toads had apparently refused and Tsunade was furious...

...which is why she was now raging at Jiraiya, who had the unfortunate fate of delivering this information directly to her. The toads sure as hell weren't going to do it; they were a summoning clan affiliated with Konoha but they weren't required to get involved with the affairs of the village.

"N-now calm down T-Tsunade! You haven't heard the whole story!" Jiraiya said worriedly, attempting to calm the woman who looked ready to resume her old method of punching him through walls for the smallest of incursions... if peeping could be referred as 'small'.

"I know the damn toads refuse to summon him to Mount Myōboku, when it would solve _**ALL**_ our problems! What else do I need to know?!" The woman retorted angrily. It was helping that she was stressed enough with merely being Hokage, and now she had to deal with this crap?! It made her wonder how reliable the Shinobi under her command were.

"Well, they... uhm... they have policies, y-y'know? They don't just... allow _any_ summoner to enter their home..." The sage said, attempting to placate Tsunade. Given his current level of fear in regards to being punched through a wall, his tone didn't carry enough confidence to accomplish anything but to further Tsunade's anger.

"Why not!? This is an important situation, he isn't **JUST ANYONE!**" Tsunade raged, before calming herself to avoid shouting restricted information across the village. "He is the Jinchūriki of the strongest Bijū, the sole wielder of the Shōton as far as we know, heir to the Uzumaki clan – a clan which are almost **EXTINCT** mind you – and the only son of you-know-who!" She seethed as quietly as possible, while Jiraiya was forced to wither under her gaze. He had made the same argument, but the toads were being very stubborn on the subject.

"Tsunade! That's enough!" Jiraiya snapped commandingly. Tsunade paused in her seat, looking at him in surprise at the outburst. To be honest, she hadn't considered his own views on this situation... and give the fact that he had a personal relation to Naruto... it must have made it harder. "...I understand, but the toads are refusing and you getting angry isn't solving anything."

Jiraiya's expression was one of determination and calm but on the inside he was equally or even more upset than Tsunade was. He'd failed Minato and his son time and time again, and now that he'd finally started to atone for his errors in judgement, the boy was taken from right under his nose. He had all the tools at his disposal for reclaiming him and he was being denied in their use. It was both frustrating and saddening all at once.

_**Knock Knock**_

Tsunade raised an eyebrow at the door, wondering just what barrel of laughs was waiting to tumble down the slippery slope that was her life. Jiraiya shrugged before walking over to the door and opening it to reveal Homura and Koharu; the two members of the Konoha Council and the two most irritating 'advisers' that ever lived.

"Any news on the location of Naruto Uzumaki?" Homura asked strongly, in a condescending tone that did not escape anyone in the room.

Tsunade's head quickly hit her desk as her hopelessness and exasperation finally got the better of her. An almost mad laugh escaped her lips as she realized that this wouldn't end until Naruto was found.

_'I don't know whether to hug him or kill him when he turns up...'_

* * *

><p>"You... are the worst kind of person."<p>

"What? I didn't think you'd fall for it..."

"You shouldn't have suggested it at all!"

"Who removes a head after an assassination?"

"Apparently not Root!"

A scoff that conveyed a sense of certainty was then heard through the room, where Naruto and Sāra were having a small... disagreement. Sāra had 'informed' Naruto that Root usually take the head of the target after they were killed, but apparently this was a small white lie. Naturally, Naruto was a little annoyed by this, but Sāra believed it was still pretty funny.

Honestly Naruto was pretty confused that a Root agent could find things funny in the first place, but was quickly getting a pretty clear image that Sāra was... different from the other agents. She had a sense of humour – albeit a little twisted – and actually seemed to have emotions. These things alone were enough to raise suspicion, but at the same time it intrigued Naruto. He'd never let them turn him into a mindless drone, but what was her excuse?

"Ahem!"

Naruto turned to see the irritated face of Danzō, an almost amusing scowl adorning his withered old visage. Naruto cleared his throat before taking a more professional stance, with Sāra begrudgingly doing the same. It was quite funny to see Danzō looking annoyed, but that was news for another time. Renta and Sai were waiting patiently for the two strange people in the room to stop bickering.

"Aside from Sāra's little... gesture... the assignment went very well. I'll be honest, I didn't expect such ruthlessness from you on your first assignment Soramune, but you've pleasantly surprised me... unless Renta has any serious issues, I will be giving you a permanent spot on this team. Do you accept it?" Danzō stated topically, while discretely looking over at Renta who shook his head. He let a ghostly smile grace his face and his permanently closed eye arched a little.

Naruto narrowed his eyes, thinking about the issues he had thought about when he was assigned the mission. It'd taken a little while to find Wakei, and then they had to wait the night to return, before taking the trip back, but he'd not forgotten. Nor would he. For now – however – it was best to at least act complacent.

"Hai." Naruto droned out tonelessly, befitting of his workplace. Interestingly, Sāra scoffed mockingly at him, a small smirk adorning her face. He was starting to get the impression that she was almost too... normal... for Root. There simply didn't seem to be anything wrong with her to make her fitting of the position... but then something Sai said surfaced in his mind.

"_So... Soramune, how did you end up in Root? Usually members are recruited at a young age, it's rare for anyone older than ten to be recruited."_

She didn't look much older than him, but that was entirely up for debate. Perhaps she had been with Root her whole life, and required no emotional treatment in order to make her a willing member or efficient killer. It wasn't his place to think about such things... but how unusual that he ended up being on the same team as her... another 'fully functional' human being.

"Is there a problem, Sāra?" Danzō asked tiredly, clearly having been on the receiving end of her... antics before. Sāra shook her head in a negative response, making Danzō open and roll his only visible eye. "...you are all dismissed for the day, feel free to do what you wish within the compound." He continued, before walking past them slowly and exiting the room.

The members of Naruto's team began filing out, starting with Sai, – who seemed to be following Danzō – then Renta, who just wandered in the other direction, which left Sāra, who slowly and energetically left the room. That just left Naruto, who couldn't help but be curious about what was contained in the room. It wasn't Danzō's office, but it was certainly something...

"Now just what are you doing?" Came the teasing voice of Sāra, making Naruto jump as he began to walk further into the room. He turned to see her watching from near the entrance, letting out an inaudible grunt of irritation before turning and walking out straight past her. He didn't attempt to make excuses, because he didn't want her getting the impression that he wanted to talk...

He would get some answers though, regardless of the means...

* * *

><p>Walking slowly down a dim corridor, Danzō eventually arrived at a rather unimpressive wooden door. He opened it to reveal an equally dim room, with a large throne-like chair positioned in the middle. Some people might have found it self-centred to have a throne, but Danzō liked to emphasize his leadership of Root wherever possible. The organisation <em>did <em>need him, after all... it would probably crumble in his absence.

He walked forward slowly, before allowing his cane to fall flat to the ground. His 'walking issues' were heavily dramatized, of course. He wouldn't be capable of leading such a strong and feared organisation such as Root if he was too old and weak to even walk properly, but he still needed an excuse to fool the idiotic council and Hokage back in the village. He'd need to make appearances every now and then, to make them think he was around.

He actually had a secret entrance that led to the village for himself and his most trusted employs only. It would save the hassle of explaining why he left the village so often, and underground tunnels were surprisingly easy to hide and create without notice. Maybe it was due to the village not being at full power since the Kyūbi attack, and more recently the invasion by Suna and Oto.

_**Knock Knock**_

"Enter." Danzō replied to the knock. It quickly opened to reveal the impassive face of Sai, though there were small signs of interest and confusion on his face. Sai was a simple boy, devoid of most social necessities and emotions, so it was easy to tell what he was thinking after knowing him for so long. He wasn't completely emotionless, but he was close. He required the boy's emotions for his Ink-based sealing technique. "May I help you Sai?"

"You did it on purpose, didn't you?" Sai retorted. Danzō narrowed his eye, leaning forward as though inviting Sai to continue. "...you placed Soramune on my team because of Sāra. That's why she was pulled from the standard emotional stunting procedure recently. You needed a human element."

"I removed Sāra from the standard procedure because it was unnecessary. She is already committed and efficient in the field." Danzō retorted confidently, but Sai wasn't buying it.

"I'm all but certain of who Soramune really is, and I know you'd need to play this very carefully if he is _that_ person. If he were to make the decision to leave, it could be very problematic for Root as a whole." The boy replied cautiously, avoiding using names for the sake of future reference.

"You're a good tool Sai, and an efficient agent. I'd hate to have to take extreme measures to correct these... _delusions_ of yours." The man retorted dangerously, and Sai was getting the idea that his questions would likely go unanswered. Huffing in failure, Sai did a small bow before turning and leaving the room, pausing at the entrance to get one more word in.

"I hope everything goes well, Danzō-sama."

* * *

><p>Naruto was laying on the bed in his quarters, idly tossing a small crystal ball up and down. The Shōton always was an effective tool for self entertainment when you didn't have any readily available means of entertainment. His right arms was tossing the ball up and down, while the left was casually under his head.<p>

He certainly would've seemed to be acting pretty normally right now, but he was clever and capable of maintaining his repetitious task while in deep thought. He still couldn't get his theories and the inconsistencies of what he'd been told out of his head... and what Danzō had said when he was 'asleep' troubled him. The Kyūbi had been sealed tightly, probably by Danzō somehow... but why would Danzō try to mislead him?

"_After you brought her back to the village I began to see you as a benefit to Konoha... but then you go and kill her. Its very disappointing... Uzumaki."_

Naruto crushed the ball of crystal in his hand as he caught it one last time, a deep etched scowl adorning his falsified features. The more he thought about it, and the more it became inconsistent and confusing, the more disgusted he became with being in the Root headquarters at all. It was angering him to know that he was probably being used, but to what extent?

_'I need to know! No more games Danzō, I'll show you how efficient I can be...'_ Naruto thought to himself as he jumped up from the bed and walked out the door, multiple crystal plates twisting and turning over his form as he did so. The wizened and yet scheming face of Danzō Shimura was the one that ended up leaving his room.

He looked side to side, seeing no obvious signs of another person in the corridor. That was another thing that he hated here, there was no personality to this base! It was plain, grey and boring, like someone had died and they'd turned the base into their tomb. It was the state of lifelessness personified and given shape.

It became apparent to Naruto that he couldn't exactly fake Danzō's cane, so he had to improvise a little. He figured that the theory behind the **Shōton: Henge** could be applied to a tool, so he formed a long stick of crystal, before attempting to change the appearance. Sure enough, it ended up looking like Danzō's cane, though it didn't look perfect. It would suffice though, probably.

He had a good sense of direction – fortunately, - and ended up going the correct direction to get to Danzō's office. Using sensory, he extended his senses into the room to check if Danzō was actually in there. _'Good thing I didn't bump into him... that would've been hard to explain.'_ He thought to himself with an analytical frown. He couldn't feel Danzō's presence inside, so he tried to open the door, before realizing with an almost stupid level of embarrassment that the door was locked and that he hadn't even considered that as a possibility.

"Crap." Naruto muttered, before his form shifted back to his usual one. He ran a hand through his hair in irritation, awkwardly pacing up and down the immediate area to try and come up with an entry method that didn't require busting the door down or tearing a hole in the wall. Then a thought struck him and an almost glorious smile of self-satisfaction crossed his featured.

"Oh, that'll work..." He said lowly, crouching down in front of the door and looking down the lock. He held his right hand out in front of it, channelling his chakra through the palm of his hand and into the air in front of them while the other formed a seal to concentrate it. To his joy, the space within the lock began to crystallize its way through the entire thing, before a ring shape was formed outside it.

He let out a victorious laugh while his mind pictured the possibilities of this ability in the future. He could theoretically create perfect keys for **ANY** lock using the Shōton! There was almost nothing that could bar him entry, other than more complex locks where use of the Shōton wasn't a possible.

That was a topic for another time though, as he grabbed the end of the 'key' and turned it to the side, allowing a bead of sweat to fall down his face when he turned it the wrong direction, before turning it in the other direction and successfully unlocking the door. He pushed it inwards with an inquisitive look on his face; his brows raised, his bottom lip overcoming the top and a slight tilt of the head. Seeing nothing out of the ordinary, he crept inside a few feet before stopping to look for obvious traps or detection systems.

"Strange, no security." Naruto said to himself as he resumed his stride towards a throne-like chair. He narrowed his eyes, furrowing his brows in confusion. _'What kind of egotist actually gets a throne for himself?' _He thought with what could be seen as bafflement. It never ceased to amaze him just how self-centred people could actually be...

Other than the throne, the room was actually pretty basic though. It could be described as the palace of a king without a kingdom, obviously being intended for someone important but at the same time not having the depth that real royalty or high-end figures would be expected to adorn their chambers with. It was weird, that was for sure.

Scratching his head, Naruto shrugged and walked around the edges of the room, trying to look for anything that could be important to him. He passed multiple files, all of which were quite incriminating but none of which were important to him in the slightest. It really did seem strange that Danzō wouldn't protect this stuff, but then again his agents were mindless and submissive; not expected to rebel and break in here.

As he walked around he noticed a file which interested him, so he picked it up and began to read it.

_Operative Name: Sāra_

_Real Name: N/A_

_Age: 15_

_Sāra is to be pulled from the emotional stunting procedure effective immediately. I have been informed that her emotional state could be useful to my endeavours and would like for her emotional state to remain as it is._

_I trust you'll follow my orders._

_Danzō._

Naruto raised an eyebrow, unsure why Danzō would prevent this procedure – whatever it was – from taking place. It had been signed by whoever he sent it to, so clearly it didn't go through. The time-stamp was around a week after the Chūnin exams which continued to confuse him. He put the file down, not knowing how that affected him.

Sighing, he looked around the room again. It would take a while to get through all this stuff, and he wasn't confident he could do so before Danzō returned to the room. He needed to find something a little more obvious to help sort through the random files.

In his musings, he didn't detect someone nearing the room, nor did he recognise they were looking to enter before he heard the door knock. He cursed under his breath, his eyes widening in panic. Not having sufficient time to check if he recognised the chakra signal of the mystery person, he made a gamble.

"Danzō-sama?" Sāra called out politely. "...are you in here?" She continued as she fully entered the room to see Danzō standing on the other side of the room. He was looking impassive as always, one eye covered and the other closed.

"Can I help you, Sāra?" 'Danzō' replied. Naruto was mentally dreading the next few minutes... impersonating a person and their voice was one thing, impersonating their personality and attitude was another. Sāra straightened, nodding in affirmation.

"I was wondering... why did you put Soramune on my team?" She asked meekly, making 'Danzō' furrow his brows in confusion. _'What a strange thing to ask...'_ He thought to himself, trying not to let Danzō's features mimic his interest.

"Is there a reason I _shouldn't_ have?" 'Danzō' replied calmly, which surprisingly caused a small blush to cross Sāra's face. Naruto couldn't see it; closing his eyes to mimic Danzō's usual appearance, but it was there.

"N-No! I don't have anything against him, it's just that... I don't know, he's normal."

"That was one of the reasons..." 'Danzō' lied convincingly, making Sāra's attention become focused on him once more. "...he's prey to his emotions, I needed to give him a team with someone who could convey a similar feeling. Sai is also on the team, who he'd met previously, so I thought it best to give him a team with a sense of familiarity." He finished, forcing down a smile as he slightly opened his eye to see her reaction. She certainly looked convinced, if that was a good sign.

_'I am the best liar ever...'_ He thought to himself with self-pride. He was feeling that a lot today.

Sāra allowed her pose to become more casual and relaxed as a small smile crossed her face, her mismatched eyes shinning in the darkness.

"I-I see. Thank you, Danzō-sama." She said warmly, before walking out. Naruto released a breath he'd been holding as she did so, before turning side to side and shooting his fist up into the air in an act of victory. After sufficiently regaining control of himself, he went back to what he was doing.

After a few more minutes of stressful searching, he came across something very interesting...

_Operation Crystal Storm_

_Main Objective: Claim Naruto Uzumaki for Root; method unimportant._

_Side Objective: Cover up any evidence related to his disappearance; not essential. Create an opening for his trust/allegiance. Highly recommended._

_Long Term Aim: Ensure Naruto Uzumaki becomes an agent of Root. This will allow us to gain access to his unique abilities, and possibly further the possession of the **Shōton**._

_Notes: Long-term surveillance would be recommended before doing so, as we are unaware of his social, romantic and familial connections. Make record of all possible extraction methods and mental insecurities, abilities and the likes for future reference. Do not harm important individuals (**Kekkei Genkai **wielders, political figureheads)._

_Amendment: DNA retrieved (blood form) after the Chūnin exams suggests the Shōton is inherited, not a mutation. Testing has proven that integration into other individuals is difficult, causing similar issues to the**Mokuton**, with the new hosts dying due to being overwhelmed by the cells. The last Yuki was in the area during the capture period; may cau- **REDACTED**._

Naruto grit his teeth in pure fury. It was all so clear now. This was all an elaborate scheme from Danzō's side. That disgusting man had been monitoring him for a while now, watching him to gain information regarding his strengths, weaknesses and connections. Haku was mentioned in the report, which could mean... no... but didn't the report say not to harm **Kekkei Genkai** wielders?

"I trust you found what you were looking for?" Came the mockingly calm and polite voice of Danzō. It was in that moment that Naruto knew true hate. He wanted to crush Danzō for everything the man had done to him in so small a time span. If he hadn't gotten curious, come here looking for evidence, this would've continued forever.

"You... rotten old bastard." Naruto spat as he slowly turned around, revealing a pair of blood red slits in the place of his usual eyes, his form shifting violently as the plates he used for the **Shōton: Henge **were still upon his form.

To his surprise, Danzō let a smile cross his lips. A smile. It sickened him to the bone to see such an act of amusement used in this situation. His anger rose, if it was possible.

"You truly are impressive, Naruto..." Danzō started, using Naruto's real name. "...to have gotten in here without making a sound, even though I'd secretly advised my agents to keep an eye on you and locked the door, truly shows your potential." He continued, making Naruto snarl in anger. All logical thoughts were erased, Danzō had fooled him, and he'd used Haku to do so.

"Oh I'll show you my potential alright... I'll turn you into a statue!" Naruto shouted, running at the man with surprising speed, forming a small coating of crystal over his hand to turn it into a clawed appendage. He stabbed his hand forward with a growl, which Danzō responded to by grabbing his wrist in a flash. Naruto looked surprised at the man's speed, before his other hand came up and pulled his bandages out of the way of his **Sharingan **eye.

Danzō locked eyes with him, causing his blood red eyes to revert back to their blue shades as his chakra felt disturbed. Danzō was pretty impressed that he could even draw out the Kyūbi's chakra after he'd tightened his seal so much, but the boy was full of surprises.

His eye shifted from the regular three tomoe design into a four-pointed pinwheel shape, revealing the possession of a Mangekyō Sharingan. Naruto was confused and surprised, but wasn't able to make a move before Danzō gripped his hair and pulled him up to this level with shocking strength for his age.

"I was hoping to avoid using this, but you've exceeded my expectation... I believe this will be worth the investment..." Danzō stated, locking his Mangekyō with Naruto's right eye. "...**Kotoamatsukami (Distinguished Heavenly Gods)**." He muttered, as the pinwheel was instantly reflected on Naruto's eye, the desired images and beliefs being switched around and implanted, unwanted memories being removed... but most importantly...

_You know no Haku... but that doesn't mean she's-_

* * *

><p>"-Dead!" Karin shouted at Tsunade, who was looking very tired because of the whole mess. "...how could you just let him disappear?!" She ranted, making Tsunade sigh in irritation. The woman leaned back in her chair, covering her eyes with her hand, the sunlight through the window hurting her tired eyes.<p>

"It's not like I planned it... it surprised everyone!" Tsunade retorted as strongly as she could. She'd heard for a few days that it was 'her fault' because she was new to the position and had somehow made some sort of mistake. She tried reminding them numerous times that he was within the village and therefore it could have happened to anyone, but they weren't having it.

"Karin, maybe you should calm down. They'll find him, I'm sure." Sasuke said comfortingly, but she was too worked up to be placated. She threw off his attempt to put his hand on her shoulder, inadvertently hurting his pride.

"Well what if they don't!? What if he's dead?!" The red-head continued to rage, before the door opened suddenly, but with a contained pace. In walked a figure that made even Karin frown, while Sasuke and Tsunade just sighed.

"He isn't dead." Came a soft, feminine voice as she continued to walk into the room. Karin's brows arched downwards, in both curiosity and annoyance. She'd had enough of positive thinking, she wanted answers!

"How do you know that?" She spat in return. Rather than getting annoyed or insulted by the girl's tone, the newcomer smiled sadly, noticeably tired herself and looking like she'd been upset too. The sunlight landed on her to reveal a girl with long black hair and deep brown eyes, somewhat pale skin and a sort of Haori covering her frame.

"Because he made me a promise." Haku said with a small smile.

**-****End-**

**There we have it; the big reveal. Haku's alive and it was all one big mind game. Happy? If you aren't, your expectations are too high. I can't just stop this arc midway through, I have to see it to the end... which hopefully won't take too long.**

**The transformation of Naruto had a similar hairstyle to me, though I didn't actually mean to do so. The colour was different, but the overall appearance was basically the same. Weird how I inadvertently did that... also, how was that assassination segment? I thought that was pretty awesome, if a little short.**

**Anyway... Review, Favourite and/or Follow.**

**LiamMorg. Out.**

**Ja Ne!**

**-Original Technique(s)-**

**Shōton: Henge (Crystal Release: Transformation):** The user creates a multitude of small crystals all over their body that then rotate and change colour and reflective...ness. Once all are in the desired locations and the colours and reflectivity are set, the user will be given the visual illusion of being a completely different person. This technique is undetectable via sensory, as it uses a physical compound rather than an illusion, but for the same reason the user's own chakra signal remains the same. (D-Rank. Supplementary) Parent Technique(s): **Henge no Jutsu (Transformation Technique) **_*Yes, this was influenced by Mystique from X-Men. What can I say? Days of Future Past was awesome._


	27. He Who Remains, Retains

**I don't own Naruto... or Naruto Gaiden: The Seventh Hokage and the Scarlet Spring, which has far too many syllables to be a manga title! Sixteen whole syllables! I mean, you can shorten it to Naruto Gaiden: The Seventh Hokage, but then how will I stop thinking about the Scarlet Spring, Hmm? **

**Here we are, taking the next step into redeeming this disjointed mess of an Arc. Today, we discover the outcome of Danzō's Kotoamatsukami, see what has become of Team 7 in Naruto's absence and make progress towards the real purpose of the Arc.**

_**The Frozen Roots Arc – the struggle is real**_

_**Quote of the chapter/day: "It was your own powerlessness that birthed me."**_

**Chapter 26: He Who Retains, Remains**

**-Last Chapter-**

"_He isn't dead." Came a soft, feminine voice as she continued to walk into the room. Karin's brows arched downwards, in both curiosity and annoyance. She'd had enough of positive thinking, she wanted answers!_

"_How do you know that?" She spat in return. Rather than getting annoyed or insulted by the girl's tone, the newcomer smiled sadly, noticeably tired herself and looking like she'd been upset too. The sunlight landed on her to reveal a girl with long black hair and deep brown eyes, somewhat pale skin and a sort of Haori covering her frame._

"_Because he made me a promise." Haku said with a small smile._

**-Start-**

"Where are you?"

The sudden question reverberated through silence within a featureless room. The sound was unquestionably feminine. Its intended audience slowly stirred; his pupils dilating as his consciousness began to return to reality from whatever daydream or place it had been roaming. A distinctly male hum emanated from the person as he blinked, between which his eyes sharply moved from a forward position to move to his questioner. His blank stare quickly gained some semblance of realization as the silence returned.

"Come again?" He asked, his attention now fully focused. Even still, he felt something was off; he felt he was forgetting something. The other participant in this benign conversation rolled her eyes with a huff.

"You were staring into space for five minutes straight, so I asked where you were, Soramune."

Ah, yes. That was it. His name was Soramune. It was somewhat depressing when he thought of the meaning behind it. Still, it was his name and he had to live with it, right?

His mind kicked into action as he began to think more clearly, despite a small feeling of weariness that was looming over him. He felt out of place and a little...

No, he was here because he wanted to be. That was it. He joined this organisation – he joined _Root_ of his own volition. That's who he was: Soramune of Root. Soramune _wasn't_ his name, it was a cover; a false identity conceived to protect him from his life. His life...

He was born Naruto Uzumaki... that was it. He had a sister, Karin. Their parents were killed. Yes... he became a Shinobi to protect her... he was a part of Team 7 with Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno. They'd participated in missions together. They saved a village from a villainous swordsman, formerly of Kirigakure, and his proteg-

There it was again. Something seemed off...

"You're doing it again!" His associate said, the pitch of her voice conveying a sense of annoyance. He snapped back to reality once more and focused on her. Sāra. She was an anomalous result within Root. After his little induction to the organisation he had been placed in her squad. He expected little of any of them, given Root's... methods... of ensuring efficiency and clear decision making, but she was... normal? Sort of normal.

_'That's probably the most accurate description of her.'_ He mused, not particularly concerned with her rising anger. They'd gotten along well since he joined... how long had that been now? A few months, at least. Danzō, in his eternal "wisdom" didn't appreciate human interaction, so they'd been... discrete about their amicable relationship.

Amicable. What a word to use in association with Root.

Clearing his mind of his pesky sense of unease, he focused his attention on the girl – really this time!

"Sorry about that, I'm just deep in thought." He said apologetically. The girl sighed and shook her head, her contrasting eyes showing her irritation. It was still oddity to him; a girl whose eyes were different colours, yet it was... fascinating.

"If it dulls your senses so much, maybe you should stop thinking so hard. You might break your brain." She quipped. He huffed sarcastically, feigning distaste.

Honestly, her sense of humour – no matter how archaic and underdeveloped – was the most human thing in the entire underground facility. As if he'd let it bother him.

"Hmph, if you lose any more brain cells I'd label you a vegetable and call it a day!" Naruto exclaimed, caring little about the way her face fired up in protest.

"What?! That's it, you and me, right here, right now!"

Ah yes, that was it. This was one of several sparring chambers. They'd come here to test themselves and find ways to improve, but he'd drifted into his own little world. That raised the question of why was she acting like this wasn't what they came for, but it was semantics.

_'I swear, this girl's an airhead sometimes.'_ He thought to himself with a smile. "It'll be my pleasure to take you down a peg." He remarked as he walked over to the middle of the room with Sāra close behind.

"Oh, we'll see about that." She remarked confidently, cracking her knuckles to prepare herself. He hummed carelessly, thinking little of her confidence.

Truth be told, he'd improved a lot because of her. She knew just where to push him, even if Ninjutsu wasn't particularly her strong suit. Putting aside this reminiscence, he readied himself to fight and shot the girl a smirk.

"Ready or not, here I come!"

* * *

><p>"Another mission complete, you three. Good work as always."<p>

Back in Konohagakure, things were moving with a figment of normalcy. Months had passed since the uproar from Naruto Uzumaki's disappearance and the higher ups among the village's Shinobi and leadership had begun to come to terms with their own inability to locate or protect him. Security within the village had been largely toned up in response to his disappearance, ironically making the village more defensible and stable than it had been for years.

Hunter-nin deployed to locate or recover some evidence regarding Naruto's whereabouts had all returned with nothing but whispers and loose ends. Tsunade and the Elders' council had ultimately been forced to call off the search – though Tsunade still hadn't heard the end of it.

Speaking of the Hokage, she was currently briefly what had become the new Team 7; Haku Yuki, Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno, led by the infamous Kakashi Hatake.

"Good work? _"Good work"_ implies we're actually doing something that isn't a chore." Sasuke stated. Tsunade gave him a glance but ultimately ignored his complete lack of respect for her. To an outsider, she'd have appeared weak as a Kage, but she knew the reasons behind his recent behaviour and accepted them.

Haku sighed at his response while Sakura looked surprised. Kakashi, in contrast, shot the boy a glare and turned his expression stern.

"Sasuke! That is no way to speak to the Hokage!" The man bellowed in an attempt to discipline the boy.

"Hn. A Kage should be able to do their job right." Sasuke responded, venom seeping from his tone. Kakashi, noticeably angry with Sasuke's conduct, moved towards Sasuke and attempted to grab his arm.

To his surprise, Tsunade raised her hand in a gesture for him to cease his attempts. Sasuke narrowed his eyes at her irritably and huffed to himself. He closed his eyes and shook his head, disappointed that she wouldn't even bothering defending her honour, before moving to the door.

"I'm going to train." He stated plainly, not bothering to give them a second glance and he walked out of the room.

"W-wait, Sasuke-kun! Come back!" Sakura called out, receiving no obvious response. Her expression fell flat and was replaced by a mournful frown. She felt a hand touch her shoulder and turned to face Haku sad stare.

"Just leave him be, Sakura. You know why he's like this." She stated, to which Sakura nodded. Tsunade sighed and scratched her head. Kakashi faced the wall and closed his visible eye, disappointed in himself for his many failings as a teacher and a Shinobi.

The room fell entirely silent. Every person there was thinking something akin to what Sasuke was, albeit acting on those thoughts in different ways. Tsunade sighed audibly once more, sliding her chair back and standing to her feet before looking out the windows of the Hokage's tower.

"He's not wrong." She stated sadly, gaining the attention of everyone in the room. "...He blames me for what happened, and he has every reason to. As Hokage, it's my job to protect the people of this village. I failed when it mattered."

"You know that's not true. Nobody could have predicted or stopped what happened. Haku was there and she still didn't see it." Kakashi said, attempting to console the woman. Tsunade didn't respond.

The room fell silent once more.

"You're dismissed." Tsunade said after a long silence. With nothing left to say, the remaining members of Team 7 shuffled awkwardly out of the room.

* * *

><p>"You know even though it's a spar, you are meant to <em>try<em> to win." Sāra said mockingly. Naruto moaned from the ground and slowly flopped over onto his back.

She was good. He knew he was far-and-away an inferior fighter when it came to pure Taijutsu. Despite all indications, Root members weren't allowed to use Ninjutsu within sparring grounds. There was a place for those kind of spars, but it was on high demand at all times and required Danzō's personal permission for use.

For that reason, the spars they had were Taijutsu exclusive. Even though he couldn't feel his arm and he was exhausted, he preferred it like this. Ninjutsu was his most proficient area, making improvements on his Taijutsu and supplementary skills more important. Fighting Sara was... enlightening. Her stances and movements were fitting of a female, being elegant and fluid and yet, they retained the sense of aggression and power that mainly male Shinobi prided themselves on.

_'Lee would still destroy her though.'_ He thought to himself with a chuckle, which was promptly followed by him gripping his ribs in pain as he let out a sound akin to an "oof". He was really sore.

"You're a damn sadist." He remarked plainly, to which she just shrugged her shoulder and walked over to him. He arched a brow as she leaned down and offered him her hand. His lips arched up and as he reached up to accept the gesture, allowing her to pull him up. "...thanks."

"No problem." She replied as she grabbed a towel and threw it at him. He caught it and started to wipe the sweat from his face.

Many would consider these spars to be a painful endeavour. Some Shinobi would completely forgo sparring to avoid unnecessary injuries. Naruto didn't agree. Admittedly, his natural regenerative factor may have skewed his opinion a little, but he saw promise in the occasional spar. It served to both better the self and improve one's knowledge of how their comrades fight – therein improving unit coordination.

Once he was done with it, he threw the towel back to her. Catching it, she raised it into the air a little and nodded. He took it as a gesture of appreciation. She was odd at times, yet they got along very well.

He thought back to the earliest interaction he could remember between them with a smirk. It still didn't make sense to him. He'd come to find that amusing.

_**Flashback no Jutsu!**_

_In his personal chambers, one Naruto Uzumaki, formerly of Konoha, was currently pondering things. He'd recently found an avenue to sneak off and join Root and was slowly coming to terms with his existence – even if he felt vaguely nauseous every time he tried to recall his earliest days here._

_He stared down idly at a sealing scroll. He knew it was his work but he couldn't remember writing the matrix. It was oddly better than he knew he could do and yet, he felt like he could replicate it confidently._

_Odd indeed. _

_His eyes widened as he heard the door knock and return him to reality. He blinked a few times to clear his vision and walked to the door, opening it to reveal a woman. She seemed... familiar. _

"_Hey Soramune, you've been keeping to yourself since our last assignment. Everything alright?" _

_He blinked again. Last assignment? He'd remember a "last assignment." Surely he would. _

"_Uh, do I know you?" He asked slowly. He wasn't sure if his leg was being pulled. Wait, scratch that, he was in Root. His leg most certainly wasn't being pulled. _

"_You've forgotten already? Oh, if words could kill..." She replied with a feigned sniffle. He instinctively smiled at the gesture. She seemed... fun. He had no idea who she was, but still; fun. "...Sāra? We worked on a mission in the Suna desert? We had a quaint chat in a cave? Ring any bells?" _

_He gave her a blank stare before shaking his head in exasperation. Dropping his hand from the door frame, he pushed it fully open and walked into the room, gesturing her in. She came in and promptly shut the door behind her._

"_Oh come on, forgetting your first mission is like forgetting your birthday! Ah, whatever. I'll just have to tell the tale!" She remarked, coming over and sitting beside him on his bed with a smile. _

_It was understandably strange, listening to someone dramatically recall a past experience – one that he couldn't remember, mind you – wherein he supposedly acted "depressed" throughout. Still, her found her strange way of exaggerating things to be quite entertaining. He didn't believe for a second that he'd cut the target's head off though, that was obviously a joke. _

_As she finished her little retelling, he found himself noticing that he'd actually laughed. She gave him a glance of expectancy, to which he rubbed the back of his head._

"_Sorry, still nothing. At least it sounded like it was something!" He remarked, half joking. Her exaggerated huff served to deepen his smirk. She puffed out her bottom lip irritably. _

"_Seriously? You're unbelievable..." She stated with a sigh. He gave her an apologetic look. "...Oh well. On the bright side, at least you've cheered up a little. Last thing I needed was another robot on the team."_

_Yes. It would be interesting having two humans in Root, on the same team even. Almost ironic, really._

_**Flashback no Jutsu! Kai!**_

As he gathered his gear that was stashed at the back of the room, he saw her move towards the entrance, but before he could call over to her, she turned back. "...oh, don't forget your session with Amarai!"

Before he could respond, she stepped outside. He huffed in irritation as he ran his right hand through his 'white' hair. Honestly, it just seemed odd to change his hair colour, even if it was necessary to conceal his identity.

Once he was done grabbing everything, he followed Sāra's path out the door and began to make his way to see Amarai.

Amarai was Root's utmost Kenjutsu expert – someone Naruto had been spending a great deal of time with since his induction to the organisation. He felt very passionate about learning Kenjutsu, though he couldn't quite place _why_ he felt that way. He wasn't too curious about it, since the art was very useful once you had a good grasp of it. Why wave a kunai around when you have a sword?

He quickly moved his head to the side, cracking his neck loudly as he groaned from the action. Such a reaction seemed contradictory since the action was intentional – the full results taken into account – but such things were menial.

He followed in Sāra's footsteps and strode towards the door, opening it towards him and stepping out. Two other Root agents made their way around him, giving him a slight nod as they passed. He returned the gesture mechanically. The door shut behind him a few moments later as he made his way through the featureless hallways of the Root facility.

Walking through the facility was a mindless slog; it was simply too expansive and lacked any notable stimulus, therein disengaging his mind as he trudged through its expansive grounds. As he took a jagged step, he felt his sword holster sway on his back and thus found himself becoming conscious of its presence.

He'd not been particularly good with a sword when he joined Root. He believed that he had some level of beginner's proficiency, but Amarai was quick to rebuff such things. No, he was actually quite the amateur. Once he'd found his stride, he'd opted to forgo the standard Root armament – a featureless, dual bladed Tantō without an edged tip – and instead put in a requisition for a Chokutō.

He'd found that the featureless design was non-negotiable.

He was about to turn yet another non-distinctive corner when the very person he was looking for came before him – "Amarai". Like all Root agents, he had no surname. Whether Amarai was his actual name or not was unimportant.

Amarai was a tall man, standing at an impressive 6 foot 2. He had auburn hair spiking backwards from the front of his hair, which dropped down to the bottom of his neck. The sides were cut extremely short, leaving mere a figment of hair there. Two long strands cascaded down either side of his face, arcing forward and back and they did so and going just past his chin. His eyes were a cloudy grey, with an almost stereotypical "swordsman's scar" going over and under his left eye – the eye itself being saved from harm. He had a stern face and a broad jawline. He had a light tan which began to recede near his clothing.

Speaking of his outfit, he wore a form-fitting black shirt which outlined his muscular appearance. The shirt had the sleeves missing, with a jagged tufts of cloth coming from the shoulder as though he ripped them off. Over this was a black flak-jacket which came from his left shoulder to cover his entire torso. He wore non-distinct black trousers and boots. Over his right shoulder his sword strap clung to him – being pressed close under his flak jacket. Unlike Naruto, he used the standard Tantō.

"Ah, Amarai-sensei, I was just-"

"Today's session is cancelled, Soramune. Danzō-sama has demanded your attention." The man said matter-of-factly. Naruto blinked repeatedly, before bowing and moving past the man. Before he could get too far, Amarai gripped his arm. "...make sure you keep training your body. My lessons are useless if you can't physically keep up."

Naruto nodded once more, and moved on to find Danzō. For a minute, he actually expected Amarai to say something remotely human, but then he remembered that even among Root, Amarai was a very professional person. He liked that about him, in a weird way.

Arriving at "The Shaft" as Root members had taken to calling the central, cylindrical chamber within Root's facility, Naruto saw Danzō standing in wait for him. As per the usual, the man was looking half-statue, half-serious.

"You wanted to see me, Danzō-sama?" Naruto questioned, being sure to put on his usual air of professionalism in the man's presence. Danzō hummed in response and began to turn away, gesturing Naruto to follow him.

Naruto quickly fell in line and found himself slowly walking through the facility's halls once more at Danzō's heel. He was always nervous when the man kept up this whole silent-yet-commanding atmosphere around him; It was unnerving to not know what was required of him.

They arrived at a door Naruto had become familiarized with over the last few months. One which tended to bring forth a sense of foreboding and dread.

The room where Ninjutsu _was_ allowed.

Danzō was anything but discrete; anything but efficient; anything but caring. He was a man of cold calculations and Root was founded on those very principles. This therein made the attention he regularly showed Naruto harmful and worrisome.

He **would** be made strong, one way or another.

As he returned from his thoughts, he saw a few agents calmly vacating the chamber. Danzō was stood at its centre, eyeing him impatiently. Taking a breath, he entered the room and stood in front of the man.

"You've made great improvements since your induction here, Soramune. I believe your skill with Fūton has improved to an adequate degree, so we shall move on to something more... specialized today." The man said, giving Naruto a rare sign of approval. Naruto nodded in thanks and agreement.

Despite this, his mind was in turmoil. His lessons had been, quite frankly, crushing. Danzō _beat_ information – techniques – into him. His improvements were founded in suffering... but outside this room? Few people understood Danzō's cruel methods to the true extent.

His mind moved back to his first training session with Danzō... and the very same day he'd learned to fear him.

_**Flashback no Jutsu!**_

_Naruto and Danzō stood alone in the training chamber, as per usual. Both stood impassive as the silence that permeated the air continued to grow until Danzō broke it with a hum. _

"_I've been informed of your skills and abilities, Soramune, and I must say your skill with Fūton is good for your age... but that means nothing to me; in Root I expect excellence." The man stated. Naruto nodded, giving him the go-ahead to continue. "...today, I will be teaching you a versatile technique which will serve you well in future." _

_Naruto allowed a small smirk to form as Danzō finished up. Despite all progress he'd made since becoming a Genin, the feeling of excitement when learning a new technique had never quite faded. He focused all attention on Danzō as the man addressed him once more._

"_Watch closely and learn." He said, taking a deep breath and turning his head to the side while going through a series of hand seals. Once the series was complete, he began to rapidly exhale a stream of wind while whipping his head to the side, forming a cutting wave of wind that scarred the wall. _

"_That technique is known as **Fūton: Shinkūha (Wind Release: Vacuum Wave)**. You inhale, focus chakra to your lungs and exhale while spinning your head to create a powerful blade of wind." The man stated factually. _

_To Naruto, it was obvious that the technique could be quite deadly in the right circumstances. Creating such a swift and deadly attack from the user's own mouth without warning was a useful ability. _

"_You will now use that technique on me." Danzō said seriously. Naruto blinked in response, before raising his right eyebrow._

"_Was... that a joke?" He responded, confused by the notion of being asked to harm the man – by him. Danzō shook his head calmly._

"_I do not "joke". Until you the that technique, I will be forced to use it on you." He said seriously, going through hand signs at a deliberately slow rate and tilting his head. Naruto's eyes widened as he then fired a wave of wind at him with no warning._

_'Shit!' Naruto thought to himself as he jumped over the technique at the last second. He quickly looked back to Danzō, realizing fully how serious the situation he was in truly was. To his dismay, Danzō was already going through the seals to launch another wave._

_Running off to the side, he felt another wave brush against the edge of his collar. His mind was in disarray; he couldn't focus enough to even so much as attempt to go through the signs and use a technique he'd never even used before – especially under these circumstances!_

_As another wave caught his shin as sent him cascading to the ground, Danzō hummed once more, relaxing his aged frame and standing still in wait. Naruto gasped and held his shin. Blood quickly covered his hand and began to pool slightly on the floor. _

"_Get up and attack me. I have more than enough time." _

_Naruto trembled somewhat as he attempted to pull himself up from the ground – doing his very best to ignore the throbbing pain in his leg and the extremely noticeable discomfort that came from his defiant attempts to walk on it. _

_As soon as he was stable on his feet, Danzō nodded in approval and began going through signs once more – again, with a deliberately slow pace._

_'I see what he's doing...'_ _Naruto mused to himself. '...He's going through signs slowly on purpose to show me what to do, repeatedly.'_

_The barbarism of this training method was unquestionable, but there was a small figment of logic behind it. Fear was nothing but a tool designed by the human mind to motivate people into acting – whether it be in defiance or for one's survival._

_Escape wasn't an option. _

_Taking a deep breath, Naruto ducked under yet another blade of wind. He felt a small tuft of hair go with it, but his mind was not quite so garbled now. He understood the stakes enough to disregard his fear, to an extend. _

_Going through hand signs, Naruto moved his head to the left, before whipping it back around and quickly exhaling through pursed lips._

_Sadly, the only thing he blew out was carbon dioxide. _

"_Not good enough." Danzō beckoned. Naruto grit his teeth as he started running to the side in anticipation of the next attack. As expected, Danzō whipped another blast towards his centre of mass, forcing Naruto to crouch under it. He did not notice, however, that Danzō had swung his head back the other way._

_The second blade of wind cut deep into his torso. Naruto screamed in pain as blood gushed from his chest. Danzō sighed to himself as he walked out of the room, with Naruto's consciousness leaving with him. _

"_Next time, then."_

_**Flashback no Jutsu! Kai!**_

Coming back from such reminiscence, he focused his attention on the deceptively decrepit looking taskmaster.

"Your sense in battle is good. You know when to dodge and when to block – when to run and when to stay and fight. Now, you must improve your extrasensory skills."

Naruto arched a brow. Extransensory perception was generally considered to be a niche skill for locating enemy presences and determining the nature of chakras, and yet Danzō was speaking as though it was a combat skill.

"I see that you don't quite follow. Close your eyes." Danzō ordered. Begrudgingly, Naruto obeyed the directive. After a few moments of nothingness, he felt a strong force slam into him, throwing him back a few feet. He opened his eyes and met Danzō's own. "...your senses are good, but you do not use your sensory abilities to their potential. With sufficient training, you should be able to actively use sensory to augment your awareness of your surroundings; as a literal eye in the back of your head."

The concept was fairly simple in concept, but he couldn't deny that the benefits were endless. Full awareness of enemy position at all times? Being able to detect Ninjutsu without sight and determine their natures, strength and so on? A useful concept. But to train such a thing would be difficult.

In general, sensory perception was not a "passive skill"; it required the user to focus their chakra and actively search for outside presences. In the same way that one could use Ninjutsu without hand signs, it was theoretically possible to eliminate the need to actively focus, but it would be difficult no doubt.

"Can I really learn such a thing quickly?" Naruto questioned, deeply curious about the applications. Danzō lowered his head for a moment, idly raising his right arm and lowering it as though to weigh it.

"Sensory perception is rare enough that I have not seen this feat accomplished, but I believe you can do it – given sufficient motivation." The man said calmly. Naruto knew Danzō was not one to sugar coat something, so the vote of confidence was refreshing.

Before any real sense of immersion could be accomplished, a loud knock came from the entrance to the chamber. A small frown formed on Danzō's face as he knew they would be disturbed from their training.

"Enter!" He beckoned to the door. A few moments later, two Root agents that Naruto had become accustomed to seeing over the past few months barged in – Fū and Torune. He got the impression that they were Danzō's "top goons". "...Well, out with it."

The two men walked across the room and bowed before Danzō. Torune held out a scroll in front of him, to which Danzō quickly grabbed it and slid it open. Danzō skirted the scroll quickly, his eye being open for once, and nodded idly as he did so. With a satisfied hum emanating from his throat, he slid the scroll closed once more and put it into his robe.

"Excellent work you two..." Danzō stated with a small smile. The two men further bowed their heads before standing in place. He turned towards Naruto and frowned once more. "...Soramune. I'm afraid this demands my attention. Feel free to return to your chambers."

The three men then vacated the room, leaving Naruto alone. He could decipher that something big was going down – not once since he'd joined Root had Danzō allowed _anyone_ to remain in this chamber without his presence. He felt tempted to do something without Danzō here as a form of childish defiance, but quickly shook off the idea and left the room.

* * *

><p>Sasuke Uchiha was a smart, prodigious child. It has been well over a year since he graduated from the academy now, and he was now a few months past 14. He was standing at about 4 foot eleven these days, growing ever closer to an even 5. His overall appearance had matured since the time of graduation, though his hair had remained largely the same bar a minor length increase. He liked it how it was.<p>

Despite his appearance being reminiscent of his younger self, his outlook and personality had fluctuated drastically. He was kind in his youth, before the death of his clan. He was angry and self-centred up and at the start of his Shinobi career. He'd become calmer and more acceptant of the way things were since coming to know Naruto and Team 7.

Naruto was largely responsible for him becoming unstuck from his hateful ways. He knew this well – he'd befriended the boy out of no will but his own. To say that the boy's disappearance annoyed him was elementary.

This disappearance had acted as a conduit for his anger and impatience to gradually return. As he sliced through another tree trunk with his **Chidori**, he could easily acknowledge this. A loud thunk resounded through the forest as the tree capsized. Sasuke was there, so it could be heard.

Acceptance and responsive action were two different things. He clung to his anger. It was easier than accepting his own powerlessness.

His **Sharingan** blazed as he ran as fast as his legs could take him through the forest, registering every minuscule detail as he passed. He was up to two tomoe in his left eye and three in his right these days. His reactions had improved greatly in tandem with his eye's powers.

_'Not fast enough.' _His mind seethed. He despised his own inadequacies. If he could not rely on others to protect themselves and those he was unable to protect himself, then there was only one answer.

He'd become strong enough to do it himself.

He threw himself forward, his feet leaving the ground and colliding with a thick three – a noticeable indent near its base where his foot connected once more, further scarring it.

Not fast enough.

He threw his body around counter-clockwise. His right foot raised perpendicular to the ground, he spun and slammed his heel into the tree once more. The tree buckled in place as its balance was compromised by the damage to its base.

Sweat poured down the boy's face as he scowled, bringing his hands down to rest on his buckled knees. Not strong enough. Not yet.

He raised back up and ran back the way he came. His strength and speed weren't enough. The **Chidori** wasn't enough on its own – his natural speed and strength needed to match its destructive power.

He spun on his heel, turning to face back the way he came. He lowered himself into a crouch, before shooting forward once more. His body left the floor as his foot collided with the tree. The bark shattered and the tree capsized. It fell forward towards the boy as he glared up at it in defiance.

Sparks flickered around his hand and quickly died. He'd weakened himself too much to use it again. He cursed his powerlessness once more as the tree came down on him.

Before he could be crushed, he felt a presence slam into him and carry him to safety. He grunted and shook his head as he came to realize what was happening, seeing red hair in his peripheral vision as his vision cleared from the disturbance.

"Karin?" He questioned. As she stood up and off him – noticeably angry – he felt somewhat... relieved.

"What the _hell_ is the matter with you? You nearly killed yourself!" She ground out. He knew why she was angry of course – he'd almost crushed himself with a tree that he dislodged in the first place. Something within him squirmed at the concept of upsetting her.

An alien feeling crawled up his throat as scrambled to respond.

He was feeling guilty.

"...Sorry?"

* * *

><p>There was a strange sense of satisfaction that came from being correct about a gut feeling. Its like you feel a figment of knowledge is held within you that shouldn't exist – and that you're all the better for it. This was complete rubbish of course, but it was a fulfilling feeling.<p>

Such was the feeling when Renta's squad comprised of Naruto, Sai and Sāra was summoned to Danzō's chamber – urgently. He knew not what was required of them, only that it was undoubtedly related to the scroll Danzō had received earlier in the week.

Since then, Naruto had been trying – with little success – to attain the "battle sense" that Danzō had theorized. It was as daunting as he first assumed.

Now Danzō was briefing their squad about whatever information he had come into possession of.

"As I'm sure you all know, Root exists to safeguard Konoha against threats while ensuring its dominance in the Shinobi world. To this end, we work in secrecy to eliminate anyone who threatens it and discretely gather things that can be used both for and against Konoha; documents, weapons, relics – anything that can used to better its standing; anything that could used against it."

As Danzō finished his little bout of exposition, Torune came over and handed him the very scroll Naruto saw in the training chamber. He threw it over to Renta who quickly caught it and opened it to investigate its contents.

"We've learned of a powerful relic that has been hidden in plain sight for an unknown period of time. Your squad is to wrest control of this relic and to ensure its power is used for the benefit of Konoha."

Naruto squinted his eyes. What kind of "relic" could have enough power to incite Danzō's attention? What would it even do? It was an oddity. He turned his eye to Sāra who was stood with her arms crossed, idly tapping her the index finger on her right hand against her arm. She glanced back at him, briefly nodding in his direction.

As Renta finished reading the scroll he nodded to himself and rolled it back up. He raised it slightly towards Danzō, who shook his head. He then placed it within a small pouch on his hip and walked in front of his squad.

"Everyone go back to your chambers and prepare to move. We leave at sunrise." The man said imposingly, his red eyes staring them down. Sāra and Sai both nodded and turned on an axis to face the door.

Something pressed at the back of Naruto's mind as he went through the details. As the rest of his squad vacated the room, with Sāra giving him a quick wave as she passed, he motioned to his squad leader.

"If I may, Renta, where is the relic located?" The question made Renta quickly pull the scroll back out to reaffirm the information before he turned back to Naruto.

"**Yuki no Kuni (Land of Snow)**." He said, before walking past Naruto and out of the room. Danzō was fussing with some files at the back of the room, so he didn't pay notice of Naruto's continued presence.

Something inside the boy's mind screamed at him to see what was in front of him; there was a word which resonated within his psyche.

Yuki.

* * *

><p>Similar circumstances were occurring in Konoha. A few days had passed since the last mission Team 7 was assigned to and the awkwardness from their last mission had mostly faded. Sasuke thought back to the way Karin had scolded him – at length – for his outburst. To his annoyance, he couldn't ignore her.<p>

"This may sound obvious, but I can't help but notice we're missing someone." Sakura said light-heartedly. Sasuke grunted at her for stating the office. She rebuffed him by poking out her tongue and squinting her eyes, to which he clicked his tongue in annoyance and looked the other way.

Most of the team had already gathered within Tsunade's office and they were just waiting on Haku to start the debrief for their next assignment.

"Eh, I could have sworn I told her we were needed..." Kakashi muttered to himself as he looked out the window and brushed his hand over his unruly hair. Tsunade growled at him in irritation, making him laugh nervously.

"If she doesn't turn up soon I'll simply need to debrief you three and you can just tell her la-"

Her statement was cut short by audible commotion taking place outside the room in the corridor. Some muffled apologies and sounds of running could be heard while other muffled statements blended into the mess.

The door to Tsunade's office sprung open and Haku quickly emerged through it, panting lightly. Tsunade raised an eyebrow and shot her an expectant glance. Haku's expression shifted in realization.

"Ah... excuse my lateness. I was running an errand." She said, embarrassed by the all the attention on her. Tsunade sighed, which was becoming common nowadays and leaned back in her chair.

Haku came into the room and shut the door behind her, falling in line with the rest of the squad. Sasuke glanced her way, before turning to face forward just as quickly. Sakura smiled at her mischievously, making Haku chuckle awkwardly... but being the late one was always awkward.

"Alright!" Tsunade exclaimed suddenly. "...Now that you're all here, I suppose we can get a move on. You're all here because we've had a lucrative assignment come in to escort an influential... how to say, media figure." She stated, conflicted about her phrasing. She noticed that the Genin seemed to understand what she was trying to say, fortunately for her.

Konohagakure wasn't know for its current level of technological advancement. All things considered, it was probably one of the more primitive Shinobi villages in the world at the current time. Despite this, technological advancements were steadily becoming more prevalent worldwide.

"For all intents and purposes, the risk involved is low. We're being paid for an A-Rank mission simply because of how much money they have to throw around – that, and they need to ensure the actress is protected to the utmost efficiency."

"So the person we're escorting is an actress?" Sakura asked, excitement flowing through her tone. There was something about famous figures which made people get all hot and bothered.

Sasuke shook his head; he couldn't understand the fascination with actors, actresses or all of the above. These people never turned out to be as good as they seemed.

"Yes. You will be escorting Yukie Fujikaze, who I am told plays the role of a character known as "Princess Fūn" in a popular movie series. It's as simple as that; stay near her as she records her next movie and ensure nobody attacks her."

Kakashi closed a small book and raised his head to face Tsunade. He'd been listening – somewhat – but wasn't fully engaged until then. He'd heard of this actress. If he remembered correctly, she was someone he'd met a long time ago, during his Anbu days.

"Say, where exactly will we be going for this assignment?" Kakashi asked, concealing his curiosity underneath an air of nonchalance. Tsunade looked down at a small dossier that she'd been given and skimmed the details.

"You will be meeting them in a nearby village and staying there overnight. After that, you'll supposedly be travelling by sea to **Yuki no Kuni** for the majority of the mission." She answered factually.

Kakashi smiled beneath his mask and closed his visible eye. Truth be told, he was uncertain about this mission already. If the actress was who he thought she was, this mission could provoke a great deal of trouble – especially if they were going near Yukigakure.

Trouble was stirring, and he wasn't a fan.

* * *

><p>The sea was boring. Serene, calming even, but boring. The wonderful reflection of the Moon's light on the water did little to remedy this, though it was good for introspection.<p>

These were the general musings of one "Soramune". Naruto didn't like the name, yet it was ironically becoming the moniker to which he identified by. "Naruto" was starting to become a distant memory.

He felt a small tinge of melancholy over the concept, but it was all a means to an end. The question he now had to ask himself was simple.

"Who, or what, am I?"

"I believe the correct answer is _"an idiot"_, right?"

Naruto swallowed the desire to murder Sai right then and there. Nobody would know. He'd play it cool; "I miss the poor bastard already", he'd say. Ah, it would be great. Too bad he couldn't, since he was on a boat. People would notice Sai was gone, there'd be an investigation... too much trouble.

"Any particular reason you're bothering me Sai?" Naruto asked plainly. Sai hummed in thought, coming over to stand beside him and look out over the waters with him. He assumed it was done for effect; Sai wasn't the reflective type.

"Not really. Just killing time." The pale boy remarked. Naruto nodded in agreement.

"Can't fault you there."

Naruto shook himself of his doubts and turned his back to the water. He looked up at the boat's mast and hummed in thought, before idly jogging over to and up it. Sai paid no mind of the action.

_'To think chakra adherence was so difficult back when I learned it.' _Naruto thought to himself as he came to the top of the long pole. Once he came to a stop, he took a moment to drink in the vast nothingness around him.

He stood up there for longer than he knew. It was all in the balance; little chakra was required, if any. After a while, he noticed changes on the horizon.

Frozen water was beginning to come into view near a large blot of landmass. They had arrived. He looked down and saw Sai still stood where he left him. Probably on standby mode.

"Oi! We're close! Get the others!" He called down. He saw Sai look up and make a vague gesture of acknowledge before he disappeared into the belly of the vessel. It wasn't particularly large; a small ship was plenty for a team of four and a small selection of crew.

He dropped down off the pole thoughtlessly, letting his knees buckle somewhat as he hit the ground. For Shinobi, such things were commonplace.

Renta, Sai and Sāra emerged from below deck a few minutes later as Naruto watched the shore get closer. They appeared to be nearing a non-populated shoreline. It was logical that they wouldn't use a standard dock, given some thought.

He heard a yawn from behind him and turned to see Sāra fiddling with her outfit. They were all garbed in thick white cloaks to help ward off the cold. The snowy terrain and frostbitten air would slow them down without care if they did not plan ahead. Naruto and Sāra both wore darkly coloured scarves to keep their necks warm. Renta and Sai were seemingly unfazed by the cold.

Beneath these cloaks they each wore edited versions of the standard Root uniform. The standard flak jacket and black trousers were worn, but beneath the jacket they wore long-sleeved shirts with thicker materials. They all wore black gloves – no finger holes, to Naruto's disappointment – and black boots.

Lots of black, basically. Root wasn't prided on being fashionable.

"I told you not to take first watch. You know how long it takes you to wake up properly." Naruto remarked. Sāra's rebuttal was erased as she shivered besides him. He shook his head and discretely moved closer to her.

He couldn't have her freezing. Such was inefficient.

"Save the chit-chat for later. We have work to do."

Renta came up behind them – his massive frame towering over them. He looked comical surrounded by three youths. They were good, but that didn't change their age or bodily maturity. As they all came up to the edge of the ship, Sai smiled broadly and looked to each of them. Naruto wanted to castrate him every time he did it. His smiles were simply unnatural!

Rather than give the team time to complain, Renta threw himself off the ship and onto the water's surface. They needed to stay away from shore to ensure the ship wouldn't beach.

The other three followed suit, with Naruto giving Sāra a push to move her along. As she stumbled on the water, she shot a look his way. He somewhat wished they had put their masks on to avoid such a death glare. His donned a smile in rebuttal, making her huff and walk away towards the shore.

Coincidentally, as Renta neared the shore he did just that. Sai and Sāra quickly mimicked the action, with Naruto taking a moment to look back on the ship before donning his own. Play time was over – masks were on.

Time to get serious.

"Let's move. We're wasting the cover of night." Renta said, as they all took off through the snowy forest before them.

* * *

><p>Sasuke briefly considered the prospect of becoming a magician, because his powers of assumption were off the charts. As he'd predicted, the actress they'd be tasked with escorting was – unsurprisingly – a massive pain in the ass.<p>

He hadn't been so thoroughly irritated by a person's mere in presence in years. She was unbelievably pessimistic to the point where he was very tempted to tell her to shut up.

She was the client, so naturally he couldn't. He definitely wanted to, though.

The troublesome woman had run off a little while ago. Apparently she had an aversion to the Yuki no Kuni. Kakashi had a look about him when they were informed of this, but he wasn't sure why. He didn't really care enough to ask.

This was why, at this time, they were all off throughout the town looking for her. It was already well into the night, so she was wasting _HIS_ sleep. He'd be extremely tempted to berate her this time.

"Tch. What a bi-" His comment was cut short by a slight glimpse of woman with long black hair. Hopefully it was her this time. He was damn tired from all the training he'd been doing recently.

He saw her duck into what looked like a bar, so he slowly followed behind her so as not to seem in a rush. Just as he was entering, someone bumped into him.

And there it went; the last straw.

"Watch it!" He seethed, swinging his head to the side only to be met with a familiar face. "...Oh. Haku." He muttered plainly. Damn her, she ruined his attempt to vent.

"Sorry Sasuke! I saw Yukie come in here so I rushed after her, but you must have had the same idea." Haku apologised. She seemed way more energetic than he was.

_'Yeah. No kidding.' _Sasuke though irritably. He just wanted this damn lady to lay off the salt and get back to her filming crew so he could sleep.

Shaking his head, he neglected a response and just walked into the bar. He could accept her apology later.

"Oi. Your crew is looking for you." Sasuke called over to the woman as he walked over. She swung her head around and muttered something to herself. Sasuke's **Sharingan** wasn't active, but he could tell it was some obscenity from her lips.

"That's just too bad. I have no interest in going to that barren, lifeless and cold country. I'm sure they can find another actress, things like this happen all the time." She said, swaying noticeably.

The woman was drunk. So much was obvious. She was being blunt and annoying. This was why alcohol made no sense to him; why dull your senses and make yourself so... honest? Ugh. Who needs it.

"I'm not interested in your problems, lady. I'm tired and we can't board the ship until you're on board. Besides, our mission is to escort you, not your replacement." Sasuke responded bitterly. She laughed hysterically in response for more than a few seconds. He growled under his breath as his patience thinned.

"And I don't care about _your_ problems, kid. Go play on the swings on something." She mocked.

No wait, there it was. That was the last straw.

"Hey..." Sasuke said, feigning interest. She turned his way, an eyebrow raised in curiosity. Her eyes met two scarlet eyes with one ring in each, each containing tomoe shapes. As he widened his eyes a little further, she froze up and began to fall from her chair until Haku caught her.

"Sasuke, what did you do?!" Haku asked, panicked. Sasuke huffed in irritation. All the women were talking too loud.

"Relax, I just put her to sleep. She'll be fine, so let's get her to the ship before that needs to change, okay?" Sasuke asked. Haku could tell he was annoyed. Something that was becoming more common recently.

She sighed in defeat. Admittedly, it did make their job easier.

"Fine, but you're carrying her."

"I think I can work with that. In return, I'm taking first rest."

"Deal."

* * *

><p>Renta's team trudged through the snow. The darkness masked their presence well enough to risk leaving tracks, and they weren't expecting opposition in these lifeless woods. Their intelligence on the region was solid enough.<p>

The forestry in the region was surprisingly dense. It was a mixed blessing; on one hand it concealed their movements marvellously, but also stunted their sense of direction somewhat. Every tree seemed like a perfect copy of the last.

"Say Renta, where exactly are we headed? Do we know where the target is?" Sāra inquired. The mission was seemingly a little bit too "need to know basis" right now.

Renta held up his hand and stopped the group. He needed to tell them this anyway, so here was as good a place as any.

"Not yet. We're heading to the Daimyō's "manion", though it's more of a fortress. Our sources dug up information on the relic by infiltrating the his inner circle. We're gonna get the details from its source." He replied. Sāra put her hand on the bottom of her mask and nodded, drinking this in.

Sai, meanwhile, let out a hum. Renta turned his head to the boy expectantly. Sai put his hand under his right elbow and let the other arm loosely lean in the air.

"A Daimyō? That doesn't seem like the kind of person to know about some ancient relic of supposedly great power." Sai said, getting a word in. Renta nodded in agreement with an accompanying grunt.

"Exactly. His title is a smokescreen at best. He usurped the country by force and has acted as a glorified tyrant ever since." The man said. Naruto smirked behind his mask.

"Two birds with one stone then, eh? I like the sounds of this." He said. They could further their own mission while also bettering the-

"We're not here to save the country, Soramune. You'd do well to remember this."

Naruto's smirk faltered. He wasn't exactly surprised; Root cared little for any territories outside Hi no Kuni (Land of Fire). Still, to be presented such an easy opportunity and ignore it... it seemed a little monstrous.

"Aye aye, captain..." He said, hiding his conflicted thoughts.

They continued their trudge through the night.

* * *

><p>"Hey, Chi. Weren't you meant to be off today?"<p>

"Yeah. Turns out Kara had to take the day off, but she didn't say why. I was the closest replacement."

"That's too bad. It's a pretty chilly night – even here."

"Yep."

The two fell into silence. Such was commonplace when your only task was to stand in front of a door and guard it. Chi sighed, looking over to the man besides her. To be honest, she'd never met him, but he seemed to know her. Guard duty started to blur together after a while.

Ah, why didn't anything interesting ever happen?

Like a cosmic joke, the two noticed a shadow appear on the ground below them. Chi twisted her body and looked up to see what what appeared to be a... black snake?

Before she could speak or any of them could react, they found themselves entangled by the strange creatures which, on further analysis, seemed to be composed of ink. The snakes tightly wrapped around their torsos, mouths and legs as they both fell, squirming, to the ground.

A few moments later, a group of four masked Shinobi garbed in white dropped down from above. Chi found herself hating her own boredom as they drew near.

"Good work on disabling them quietly." The tallest man said, looking to a boy with black hair. Since they were all masked, no obvious features stood out besides contrasting hair colours.

One with white hair sighed audibly before pulling out a large blade over his shoulder.

"Geez, you could at least knock them out or something. Have to do everything around here..." He said, muttering the last sentence as he quickly bopped the man over the head and into unconsciousness.

Despite Chi's fear, she thanked her lucky stars that they would survive the night as he came and did the same to her.

"Alright, now what?" Naruto said as he looked back at the so-called fortress.

When Renta said "fortress", Naruto didn't exactly take it literally. Dotō's mansion? It was most definitely a fortress; the place was titanic – further emphasized by the fact that it was sitting on a plateau suspended far above the forest.

Infiltration could be more difficult than they'd assumed.

"Now we wait." Renta said seriously. Naruto was very tempted to question him when the door behind them swung open, causing the winds to surge forth into the new entrance.

As they turned, they were met with a woman with long black hair in a thick Haori. She had obvious make-up on and jewellery on her hands, around her neck and a few rings on her fingers.

"You must be our contact." Renta implied. The woman nodded and arched her neck to direct them to the door. They quickly followed after her and closed the door behind them, paying no heed to the unconscious staff outside. "...we've come for Dotō, where is he?"

"Finally, we're moving. I'm tired of wearing all this... nonsense." She stated with a disgusted frown. Naruto nodded mechanically, assuming that she was the one who infiltrated Dotō's inner circle. She'd need to dress the part, so it made sense. "He's currently in his chambers. It's near the top, but staffing is light tonight – you're welcome – so you shouldn't have too much trouble."

Renta nodded in appreciation. She pointed towards a door on the right and walked further down the room before disappearing into one of the other chambers. As they came to the gestured door, Renta stopped them.

"We're in enemy territory, so we need to be careful. Soramune, you're on sensor duty. Inform us of nearby patrols. Sai, you're in charge of disabling anyone in our way. Sāra... your our trump card. You know what to do."

Renta then put his hand on the handle of the door, looking at Naruto for confirmation before opening it. Naruto focused his senses and detected no presence, so he nodded to give the go-ahead.

They moved into the next room quietly, closing the door behind them. There was only one exit to the room, so they moved forward quickly, sticking to the wall for caution. Naruto was at the back, actively trying to sense enemy presences.

Once more, he felt nothing, so they moved into the next room once more. This time there was a staircase. Naruto felt two personnel above. Before they climbed the stairs, he signed out a "two" to the group and gave a rough point to where they were standing. Sai nodded and took out a scroll and brush before scribbling down several snakes and a few mice.

The stairs were fortunately blocked by a wall, so there was no risk of being seen climbing. As they reached the top, Sai animated his drawings, allowing the mice to run forward into the room.

"Eh? Where the hell did those damn rodents come from?" A voice within the room muttered, before sounds of stamping and clanging could be heard. Naruto nodded and Sai let the Snakes loose. Moments later sounds of surprise and muffled calls could be heard. Sāra moved over and whispered to each of them, and they both calmed down before losing consciousness.

She was good at Taijutsu, but her signature skill was "Spoken Genjutsu". She called it the **Nang****oai**** no Jutsu (Soft Word Trance Technique)**. She was very proud of it, and Naruto would freely admit that it held powerful potential.

They continued through the facility without issue. Most of the personnel were baseline Shinobi who were completely unprepared for a specialized and coordinated unit. One or two of them were smart or tenacious enough to make a fuss, but were quickly subdued by Renta's pure strength.

Before they knew it, they arrived at a very large door. Two of them flanked each side, and Naruto focused his chakra to "see" within. One presence. It had to be Dotō.

"He's there." Naruto whispered. Renta nodded and held up three fingers.

_'Ah. The good old fashion rush strategy.'_ Naruto thought to himself.

Renta slowly counted down until clamping his fist tightly. Naruto and Renta then opened one of the double doors each and quietly ran across the room. They slowed down as they noticed the giant screen in the background.

Dotō was... watching a movie?

The movie was loud enough to mask the sound of the door, apparently. It was quite beneficial, really, since the four of them could then discretely stroll over to him. Dotō stirred as they obscured the video but as he tried to turn, Naruto quickly drew his blade and put it to the man's neck.

"What the hell is this? Who are you people?!" The man bellowed. He pushed back on Naruto's blade too quickly for the boy to react, but he was quickly met with Renta's fist before Sai's snakes entangled him "...Argh! Bastards... what do you want?! Let me guess, you're trying to be big shots by saving the people from the big bad tyrant. I have news for you, I'm the only thing keeping this country runni-"

He met Renta's fist again.

"Shut up and speak when spoken to." Renta declared coldly. Naruto tilted his head to the side; he couldn't doubt Renta's resolve, that was for sure. "...We're here in search of a relic hidden somewhere in the country. You know where it is and how to use it, and you're going to tell us."

"How do you... no. No. I see. You aren't some thugs. I know when I'm beat. Tell you what, you there, black haired guy, go over to that desk over there and grab the map." He said.

He'd become surprisingly... docile. Sai looked to Renta for confirmation, and the man nodded. Naruto was very tempted to tell him to be careful, but Sai getting blown up was sounding pretty nice right now.

Sai opened the desk up and flicked through a few documents before finding the map in question. He went over and passed it to Renta who looked it over before putting it before Dotō.

"We'll find it here?" He inquired, pointing towards a circled area. Dotō nodded with a smile.

"Yes, of course. There's something you'll need to know as well. You see her, on the screen?" He said, tilting his head towards the movie on-screen. There was a black haired woman currently on screen. "...she has something you'll need to use it. You'll need to find her yourselves though, I have no idea where she is. Look for a hexagonal crystal."

Naruto's eyebrow arched. Hexagonal Crystal? That sounded similar in nature to the Shodai's Necklace. If they were connected...

"If you're misleading us, we'll be back." Renta said with finality. Dotō nodded profusely as Naruto's group left the room.

Once the doors shut behind him, Dotō let out a laugh.

"Oh yes, feel free to get the Crystal. I'll be more than happy to let you all do the work for me."

* * *

><p>After sufficient investigation, it seemed Dotō was correct. The relic was indeed located where the map indicated, but there was a hole in the pedestal located there that seemed to be a perfect fit for a "Hexagonal Crystal".<p>

Renta was somewhat irritated at the discovery. They'd accomplished what they came here to do; to get the necessary information from Dotō, but they hadn't been able to locate the key. Alas, it seemed like they'd need to report back to Danzō and move from there.

As they came over a mountain, they saw a harbour where their ship was docked. The plan had been to extract in a populated area, since it would seem less conspicuous after they let the country's Daimyō alive and capable of searching for them.

The featureless beach they arrived from would've been difficult to find anyway.

Pulling out a pair of binoculars, Naruto noticed a second ship at the harbour, a bit larger than their own. He saw several people leaving the ship, one of which was particularly notable.

"Woah, isn't that the person from the movie?!" Sāra exclaimed in disbelief. Renta quickly took her Binoculars off her and looked for himself. Conveniently enough, it was indeed the same woman. Renta let out a satisfied hum as he realized his mission hadn't failed yet.

He hummed again. Naruto knew it was one of irritation, so he took another look. Behind his mask, his face froze.

Team 7 was here. His team... was here. Despite this, he wasn't looking at them.

With them, was a girl who looked strangely familiar. She wore a Haori similar in nature to a Kiri Hunter nin.

A four-pronged pinwheel was briefly mirrored in his own eye.

**-****End-**

**Hope you guys don't mind the flashbacks. I needed to establish some plot without starting in the "past" (forward from the last chapter, but still).**

**I promised the first Naruto Movie. I didn't say how I'd use it. **

**Anyway... Review, Favourite and/or Follow, if such is your will.**

**LiamMorg. Out.**

**Ja Ne!**

**-Original Technique(s)-**

**Nangoai no Jutsu (****S****oft Word Trance Technique): **The user focuses chakra to their vocal chords before uttering words laced with a Genjutsu. Anyone who hears the spoken word(s) will be affected in a variety of ways, depending on the user's preference. (C-Rank. Supplementary. Genjutsu)


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